The Egyptian Television (TV) host Mohammed El Gheity has issued a plea to President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, in order to lift a ban suspending his TV show broadcasted on LTC channel.
“They are punishing us for loving this country and Woking hard,” said El Gheity in a televised statement, adding that he is making a request for the president to intervene and stop the halting of his show.
The LTC administration confirmed its commitment to the council’s decision.
On Monday, the Supreme Media Council’s head Makram Mohamed Ahmed ordered the suspention of the broadcast of LTC for two weeks, and issuing what it described a final warning for Al Hadath channel.
In a statement, the council said that it held two meetings in a row to look into complaints against LTC TV, as well as a number of professional violations. Therefore, the council noted that it decreed to suspend some TV shows of the channel as well as halting the entire broadcasting.
The council said that despite “issuing over 10 decisions of suspending some of the channel’s TV shows and imposing fines, the LTC administration did not commit to media ethics and violated the council’s previous decision of banning the LGBT community from being hosted on media channels.”
According to the statement, the LTC has not informed the council of “some unqualified figures who are not members of the Media Syndicate,” who led some of its shows.
In October of last year, the council imposed a ban on hosting the LGBT community or supporting and promoting their rhetoric or values.
The gesture followed an outrage sparked earlier in September of the same year, over raising rainbow flags during a concert of the Lebanese band Mashrou’ Leila. Dozens of audiences accused of holding flags were arrested on charges of inciting ‘debauchery’ and ‘promoting homosexuality.
