Egypt TV host gets jail term for defaming Mursi

An Egyptian court on Monday sentenced controversial television presenter Tawfiq Okasha to four months in prison for defaming Islamist President Mohammed Mursi, state media reported.

The court in the southern province of Luxor sentenced Okasha -- who was not present at the trial -- to four months in jail and ordered him to pay a fine of 100 Egyptian pounds (around $16) following a lawsuit by a former MP Nasreddine Moghazi.

Okasha, who heads his own TV channel Al-Faraeen and is known for his lengthy anti-Islamist rants on a talk show, faces several lawsuits including a case for alleged incitement to kill Mursi, judicial sources said.

His channel was suspended on August 16 after it aired a show that was stridently anti-Mursi, a long-time member of the Muslim Brotherhood who quit the organization when he was elected president in June.

On Saturday a court ruled that Al-Faraeen was allowed to resume broadcasting.

Last week Okasha was detained overnight for former convictions passed in absentia, after visiting a police station to check on the status of his court case for alleged incitement.

He was notified of two six-month convictions for issuing bad cheques and one-month terms for stealing electricity, and was then released again after spending nine hours in custody, according to a security source.