The Egyptian Satellite Company (Nile Sat) announced on
Saturday the establishment of new Islamic channels, coinciding with the
beginning of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. This step comes days
after Egypt's military closed several conservative Islamic channels that
supported ousted president Mohamed Morsy.
In a statement, the company said that the new channels will
include Al-Fatah channel, which will offer recitations and
interpretation of Quranic verses. It will officially launch at the
beginning of Ramadan, expected to occur on Tuesday. The channel plans to
offer translations in English and Turkish, channel director Ahmed Abdu
Awad has said.
Dream3, another channel to be aired through Nile Sat, will
run material about moderate Islamic perceptions and host scholars from
al-Azhar, the highest religious institution in the Sunni Muslim world.
Several channels supporting ousted leader Mohamed Morsy
were closed following Defense Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s
announcement on Wednesday that the president had been removed from power
in response to wide-scale protests demanding early presidential
elections.
The closed channels include the Muslim Brotherhood’s Misr
25, as well as Salafi-oriented channels al-Hafez, al-Nas, and al-Rahma.
The measure has been criticized by Amnesty International and other
rights groups.
Other Salafi channels, such as al-Nada and Amjad, were not
taken off the air, but continued to operate with restrictions on
material and guests.
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