Faraeen TV channel to resume broadcasting, Tawfik Okasha still banned

Sunday 12-06-2016 08:49 PM

Tawfiq Okasha/Reuters

CAIRO, June 12 (Aswat Masriya) - The al-Faraeen TV channel, owned by ex-lawmaker and controversial media figure Tawfik Okasha, will resume broadcasting after three months of suspension within days. 

The administrative court ruled on Sunday against Egypt's Media Free Zone decision to suspend al-Faraeen TV channel for one year. 

Okasha however is still banned from appearing on al- Faraeen TV as per the court’s ruling.

Citing a statement by the channel, state-run news agency MENA reported that the channel might resume its work after Ramadan, depending on the decision of its administration.

The Media Free Zone administration suspended last March al-Faraeen for one year.

Earlier in March, Okasha was expelled from Egypt's House of Representatives days after he met with the Israeli ambassador Haim Koren. The majority of House members, 465 out of 596, voted in favour of removing Okasha from his position as a lawmaker.

Following his expulsion, Okasha's television channel al-Faraeen was shut down. An announcement aired on the channel said then it is suspending airing programmes and that it was up for sale. The Media Free Zone’s suspension decision came just one day later.

Okasha is known for his vocal political criticism and his unique, sometimes derisive attitude, with many of his monologues becoming the centre of ridicule on social media, often turning into memes.

He once tried his luck in politics before, proceeding to establish a political party in 2013 and announcing his intention to run for president. 

Okasha was a member of The National Party of Egypt established in August 2011, an off-shoot of of ousted President Hosni Mubarak's now-defunct National Democratic Party. He contested but failed to win a seat in the 2012 parliament.

Over the past few years, he had several run-ins with the law. Although courts have ruled in his favour in many of the charges he faced, including insulting former president Mohamed Mursi, Okasha was found guilty in three cases for squandering marital funds, beating and slandering his ex-wife. He was arrested in August 2015, but was released on bail days later.

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