Cairo: Egypt’s celebrated TV satirist Bassem Yousuf will face new questioning on April 29 for allegedly insulting Islam and President Mohammad Mursi, prosecution sources said Wednesday.
The decision to summon Yousuf was made after prosecutors investigated Mohammad Al Amin, owner of the private TV station CBC, which airs the satirist’s widely popular show “Al Bernameg” (The Programme), added the sources.
Technicians will also be tasked with vetting the authenticity of videos of certain episodes from the show in which, claimants say, Yousuf defamed Islam and Mursi, said the sources.
Yousuf, a former heart surgeon, is currently in New York to attend a gala honouring him after Time magazine picked him among the world’s most influential 100 people.
He was questioned last month and released on bail on the same allegations. Yousuf, 39, rose to fame through YouTube videos following a 2011 revolt that deposed former president Hosny Mubarak.
His popularity widened after he started presenting his show on the private ONTV and later on CBC.
He is famous for poking fun at Islamists, who have dominated Egypt’s political scene since Mubarak’s overthrow.
