(Reuters) - An Egyptian court ordered the suspension of online video service YouTube for a month on Saturday for broadcasting a film insulting the Prophet Mohammad, state media reported.
The country's administrative court ordered the ministries of communication and investment to block YouTube, owned by Google, inside Egypt because it had carried the film "Innocence of Muslims," said state news agency MENA.
The 13-minute video, billed as a film trailer and made in the United States, provoked a torrent of anti-American unrest in Egypt, Libya and dozens of other Muslim countries in September.
The video depicts the Prophet as a fool and a sexual deviant. For most Muslims, any portrayal of the Prophet is considered blasphemous.
The court said it was ruling on a case brought about the film several months ago, without going into further detail.
YouTube had "insisted on broadcasting the film insulting Islam and the Prophet, disrespecting the beliefs of millions of Egyptians and disregarding the anger of all Muslims" the court said, according to MENA. (Continue Reading.)
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Egyptian Government Suspends YouTube over Muhammad Film
According to an Egyptian court, YouTube must be punished for broadcasting "Innocence of Muslims." The court is apparently convinced that online video hosting sites must give special status to Islam. That is, when a video criticizing Christianity, or Judaism, or Atheism is posted, YouTube should allow the criticism. But when someone posts a video critical of Muhamamad, YouTube should respond, "We're sorry, but we cannot broadcast material that may be offensive to the Holy Prophet Muhammad." Gotta love the Arab Spring.
5 comments:
I would have a major problem with this were it to have happened in the US.
As it is, it seems fairly consistent for a mostly-Muslim nation to forbid what it considers blasphemy from being broadcast within its own borders.
It might (and does) seem anathema to westerners, but this is perfectly consistent with professing Muslims, and an overtly Muslim government.
Wouldn't you agree?
Justin,
I think you missed the point. The United States and other Western nations backed the Arab Spring and the Muslim Brotherhood against more secular regimes. Now that Islamist governments are in place, they are becoming more Sharia compliant.
So yes, it's perfectly consistent with a Muslim government to block criticism of Muhammad. But when the West helped put such governments in place, we bear partial responsibility for the Sharia compliance.
In other words, the United States of America just helped block YouTube in Egypt.
David,
I have made that connection in the past. I was raising a flag when the US got involved over there, when the "Arab Spring" was being erroneously presented to us as a "freedom" issue. We had no business over there- you and I are agreed on this. I do agree with you that the US government is largely responsible for (these) consequences of its actions over there. I think I should have finished my line of thinking in my first post.
I don't like violating Godwin's Law (Google it, there's a wikipedia entry), but I will make a Hitler comparison here. Hitler plainly laid out his intentions on eastward expansion years before he assumed power. No one believed him.
Likewise, the Islamic agenda is clearly laid out in their own words and their own writings, as I outlined (and linked to you) here:
http://www.arcticpilgrim.com/2013/02/a-heart-warming-surah-9-song.html
The most amazing thing is that no one believes them.
I am sorry for not more fully explaining my line of thinking. I can see where I left the wrong idea by leaving my thoughts half-said. You and I are very much in agreement in this area.
BTW, I was introduced to your site during some of Nabeel Qureshi's Biola University lectures that I found on iTunes.
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