DUBAI: Egypt’s Court for Urgent Matters has set a date next month for the first hearing in the case calling for the withdrawal of the BBC’s licence to operate in Egypt and closure of its offices in Cairo, local media reported.
The hearing, set for April 10, will look into the BBC’s news report on the alleged forced disappearance and torture of opposition members by Egyptian security forces.
The lawsuit was filed by lawyer Mohamed Hamed Salem who claims the “BBC broadcast false news with the aim of undermining the stability of Egypt and defaming Egypt's reputation in the field of human rights.”
The BBC report showed an Egyptian woman called Mona Mahmoud Ahmed, also known as Zubeida’s mother, accusing the police of kidnapping her daughter.
Zubeida Ibrahim Younis, later appeared on an Egyptian private television channel disputing claims that she had been “kidnapped by authorities” and tortured.
Hearing on closure of BBC’s Cairo office set for April
Hearing on closure of BBC’s Cairo office set for April
