Cairo: Egyptian prosecutors are probing new complaints against popular satirist Bassem Yousuf, this time for “insulting Pakistan” and “spreading atheism,” judicial sources said.
The wildly popular Yousuf - whose weekly political satire programme Al Bernameg (The Show) has spared few public figures of merciless critique - is currently on bail pending investigation into charges of insulting President Mohammad Mursi and Islam.
The new lawsuits accuse Yousuf of “insulting the state of Pakistan and causing tensions in its relations with Egypt.”
He is also accused of insulting religion and “spreading atheism.”
In an episode after Mursi visited Pakistan in March, Yousuf made fun of a hat worn by the president when he received an honorary doctorate from a university in Islamabad.
One lawsuit claimed that Yousuf was attempting to “spread atheism” after he allegedly made fun of the prayer ritual which constitutes “questioning one of the five pillars of Islam.”
Yousuf confirmed he was being investigated again on his Twitter account.
“A new investigation started against me accusing me of: insulting Islam (again), spreading atheism & insulting Pakistan #LOL.”
Under Egypt’s legal system, complaints are filed to the public prosecutor who decides whether there is enough evidence to refer the case to trial. Suspects can be detained during this stage of investigation.
