Baha'i is not a religion, according to Sobhi Saleh, a lawyer and prominent member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Saleh said Baha'i cannot be considered a religion or an ideology, and said Islam is committed to the rights of all monotheistic religions. Saleh, a member of the committee who drafted the constitutional amendments, made the statement during a political debate at the Cairo Center for Human Rights Studies. He added that Islam forbids attacking other religions. He said the terms “religious state” and "civil state" have no basis in fact are merely the shallow translation of foreign terms. He also said the word "theocracy" does not mean a religious state but a state that is governed by divine right. Saleh pointed out that Islam discredits the concept of a theocratic state more than 91 times in the Quran, and said he condemns whatever the Quran condemns. The debate witnessed sharp criticism of Saleh from member of the Coptic Christian community, who did not take kindly to being referred to as ‘dhimmi,' a term which refers to a non-Muslim subject of a state governed in accordance with Sharia, Islamic Law. The Baha'i faith is the most recent monotheistic religion, established in 1863. It originated in Iran and believes in the progressive revelations of God. Baha'is believe all religions are true and from God, but that at different times throughout human history a new manifestation – a new prophet – is needed in order to adapt to the changing times and cultural traditions. They do not believe that Mohamed is the final prophet of God, which has led to the main conflict between Muslims and Baha'is. There are around 2,000 Baha'i in Egypt.
