13 May,2009 11:26 AM IST | | Agencies
A court in Egypt has banned pornographic websites, labelling them "venomous and vile" and spreading vice among several segments of the society.
The administrative court issued the ruling on a petition filed by a lawyer, Nizar Ghorab who demanded court direction to the Ministry of Communications and the National Telecom Regulatory Authority to block pornographic websites.
The court said there are porn websites that are spreading vice among several segments of Egyptian society. "Letting these Web sites (work) ruins moral values," the court ruling said. "Freedoms of expression and public rights should be restricted by maintaining the fundamentals of religion, morality and patriotism," it said yesterday.
All necessary measures must be taken to block such websites as they breach freedom of expression and threaten national security and the interest of the State. Reacting to the ruling, Ghorab hailed it as "a victory over vice and corruption".
