Egyptian actor to face trial over photo with Israeli singer

Egyptian actor and singer, Mohammed Ramadan, will face trial in December, following outrage in Egypt when a photo he took with an Israeli singer was posted on social media.

A lawyer, Tareq Mahmoud, filed a lawsuit against Ramadan, saying the photo offended Egyptians, but it was not clear what the precise charge against him was.

The Cairo Court for Urgent Matters said the trial would begin on Dec. 19.

A photo of Ramadan posing with Israeli singer, Omer Adam in Dubai was first posted on Twitter by an Emirati journalist, and was deleted afterwards.

It however, later appeared on a Facebook page with the title “Israel speaks Arabic’’ linked to the Israeli Foreign Ministry along with the caption “Art always brings us together.’’

In response to the attacks online, Ramadan said on his own Facebook page that he never asked people their nationality before they took picture with him.

He also posted a video with a Palestinian fan in Dubai, accusing his attackers of trying to sabotage his success and popularity.

Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979.

However, it has been described as “cold peace’’ and many in Egypt reject normalisation between the two countries.

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain recently established official ties with Israel. (dpa/NAN)