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Egypt court issues suspended sentence to radical preacher for insulting Christians

The preacher, Abu Islam, will also have to pay a fine of about $ 430

CAIRO, June 16 (Itar-Tass) - A court in Cairo has issued a suspended sentence for eleven years in jail to a preacher of radical Islam for insulting Christians.

The preacher, Abu Islam, will also have to pay a fine of about $ 430.

The theologian who has won notoriety in this country for his sharply-worded statements on Christianity and the liberal opposition was found guilty of tearing up and burning a copy of the Bible last September during mass riots in front of the U.S. embassy building.

The protests were triggered by the release of an amateur movie ‘The Innocence of Moslems’ featuring the Prophet Mohammed that caused an outburst of Moslems’ rancor all around the world.

In addition to inflicting an insult on religion, Abu Islam was also found guilty of breaking law and order and spreading libel.

His son received a suspended term of eight years and was told to pay a fine of $ 285. The authorities issued similar charges to him.

Egyptian laws declare expressions of contempt against religion to be crimes. For instance, the Cairo criminal court issues a suspended death sentence last November to seven Coptic Christians living in the U.S. for involvement in the production of ‘The Innocence of Moslems’.

The Office of the Attorney General said it would press for the offenders’ extradition from the U.S. and would use the Interpol channels for this.

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