CAIRO: An Egyptian Coptic Christian teacher in the southern governorate of Sohag has been arrested and detained by police pending investigations that he posted images “insulting” to Islam on his Facebook page. Police were reported by al-Ahram newspaper as saying the man could be charged with blasphemy and would face up to five years in prison if convicted. Bishoy Kamel, 32, reportedly posted cartoons on Facebook that defamed the Prophet Mohamed and Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi. Mohamed Safwat, who filed the charges against Kamel, argued that that the teacher had also “insulted members of his own family." Kamel has admitted to managing the Facebook page under investigation. But he argued that he should not be held responsible for the content of the Facebook page, since the site was hacked on July 28. This is not the first time social media pages have come under attack in Egypt. Last year, business tycoon Naguib Sawiris sparked controversy when he posted images of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse in traditional Islamic garb, which many Muslim Egyptians believed to be insulting to their faith. He apologized for the posts, but his Mobinil mobile operator was hit with a massive number of customer withdrawals as a result. Then in April of this year, a teenage Coptic boy was sentenced to three years in prison after publishing cartoons on his Facebook page that mocked the Prophet.
