In a move expected to enrage Islamists, Egypt's Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni has directed that the literary class "The Arabian Nights" be presented in stage shows, officials said on Monday. The suggestion was made by Hosni during a meeting with chiefs of the State-owned theatres on how to develop them and lure audience to their performances, they added. Earlier this month, Egypt's Chief Prosecutor dismissed a complaint filed by a group of lawyers to ban "The Arabian Nights" also known as "One Thousand and One Nights". Prosecutor Abdel Megid Mahmud threw out the case, saying the epic tales had been published for centuries without problems, and had been an inspiration to countless artists. The case was filed by a group of Islamist lawyers after a new edition was published by the State-run General Agency for Cultural Centres. They said it was lewd. Mahmud also made reference to a 1985 ruling, which allowed the book to be published, saying the latest case brought no new elements. First published in mediaeval times, the collection of tales including "Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves" is told by Sheherazade to put off her execution by a king who wants to bed his country's virgins before executing them. In 2003, the head of General Agency for Cultural Centres was sacked by Culture Minister Faruq Hosni after it published three novels Islamists described as obscene. In their complaint against "Arabian Nights," the lawyers, calling themselves Lawyers Without Borders, catalogued references to sex which they said "called to vice and sin." Prosecutor Abdel Megid Mahmud threw out the case, saying the epic tales had been published for centuries without problems, and had been an inspiration to countless artists. The case was filed by a group of Islamist lawyers after a new edition was published by the State-run General Agency for Cultural Centres. They said it was lewd. Mahmud also made reference to a 1985 ruling, which allowed the book to be published, saying the latest case brought no new elements. First published in mediaeval times, the collection of tales including "Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves" is told by Sheherazade to put off her execution by a king who wants to bed his country's virgins before executing them. In 2003, the head of General Agency for Cultural Centres was sacked by Culture Minister Faruq Hosni after it published three novels Islamists described as obscene. In their complaint against "Arabian Nights," the lawyers, calling themselves Lawyers Without Borders, catalogued references to sex which they said "called to vice and sin."
