Many political analysts were optimistic about the Arab Spring, which began in earnest over two years ago, and manifested with street protests throughout the Middle East, leading to dramatic overthrows in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya. In Egypt, for instance, after the first free elections, optimism was soon replaced by bitter reality sd the Muslim Brotherhood quietly mobilized to become a potent political forece and won overwhelmingly in the elections. They have sought new means of theocracy in the new Egypt.
On Saturday, a Cairo court ordered the government to block access to YouTube for 30 days. The court - and much of the Arab world- remain irate with Google-owned YouTube for carrying the satirical anti-Muhammad film "Innocence of Muslims" last year. Judge Hassouna Tawfiq ordered YouTube blocked for carrying the trailer, which he described as "offensive to Islam and the Prophet." He made the ruling in the Egyptian capital where the first protests against the film erupted last September before spreading to many other countries across the Arab world, as reported by CBSNEWS.com.
The ruling however can be appealed, and based on precedent, might not be enforce. The 16-minute trailer "Innocence of Muslim" portrayed the Muslim Prophet Muhammad as a religious fraud, womanizer and pedophile. It was crudely produced in the United States by an Egyptian born Christian who's now a U.S. citizen.
Broadly worded blasphemy laws were also in effect under former President Hosni Mubarak prior to his ouster in the popular revolt two years ago.
The cases raise concern by some seculars and liberals that Islamist lawyers, emboldened by the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups' rise to power, are seeking to curb freedom of speech. However, the most widespread curb occurred under Mubarak when his government blocked all access to the Internet for several days during the 18-day uprising that ousted him from power in an attempt to disrupt communications among activists.
Protests have continued to roil Egypt in the two years since Mubarak was toppled, with the latest bout of violence directed against President Mohammed Morsi's rule, as reported by the Associated Press.
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