CAIRO: Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar Mohamed Sayed Tantawy expressed his satisfaction with the Cairo Criminal Court's verdict that ruled in his favor against Adel Hammouda, editor-in-chief of Al-Fajr, and Mohamed Al-Baz, a journalist at the same independent newspaper. "I respect the court's verdict because it defended my dignity and the position of the Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar as a symbol of Islam who represents Muslims around the world, Tantawy told Al-Masry Al-Youm. On Saturday, the Cairo Criminal Court ordered Hammouda and Al-Baz to pay a fine of LE 80,000 as civil compensation for a case brought against them by Tantawy. Tantawy had accused them of "deliberately insulting Al-Azhar institution through insulting the Al-Azhar Sheikh who represents the institution, after Al-Fajr ran an article by Al-Baz titled "The Grand Vatican Sheikh, deemed offensive by Tantawy. The piece was accompanied by a doctored image of Tantawy dressed in the robes of the Vatican Pope, with a big cross hanging from his neck. The Journalists' Syndicate called on Tantawy to drop the charges and to accept a published apology, but Tantawy refused. "I respect all the committed journalists who do their job without creating disorder in our society, they are all my children, said the Grand Sheikh. Tantawy is often criticized by opposition newspapers for being aligned with the government. Saturday's verdict coincided with two different court sessions trying editors in chief of other independent newspapers who were facing up to one-year jail sentences in political cases filed by lawyers loyal to the ruling National Democratic Party. Hammouda, along with Ibrahim Eissa (Al-Dostour), Abdel Halim Qandil (Al-Karama) and Wael El-Ebrashi (Sout Al-Ummah) were being tried on allegations of publishing false news that harmed ruling party figures, a press statement issued by the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) said. ANHRI considered the trials - regardless of the resulting sentences - an illustration of the risks that face press freedom in Egypt. "Day after day, the press all over the world sees developments, except in Egypt. The sole development that occurs in Egypt is the development of [human rights] violations, Gamal Eid, executive director of ANHRI said in the statement. ANHRI's press statement marks a year after Tantawy issued a fatwa saying that spreading false information is punishable by 80 lashes, at the time when several editors, led by Al-Dostour's Ibrahim Eissa were accused of spreading false rumors about President Hosni Mubarak's health. Eissa was found guilty and was sentenced to two months in jail, but was later pardoned by the president. "Journalists have the right to criticize him [Tantawy] and even call upon his dismissal, this is the press freedom that Al-Azhar Sheikh stands against, Eid said.
