Egypt\u2019s Prime Minister Sharif Ismail on Sunday sacked the justice minister after he said in a television interview that he would arrest even \u201ca prophet,\u201d a statement from the premier\u2019s office said.
\nEarlier, judicial sources said the justice minister, Ahmed al-Zind, was asked by the prime minister to resign.
\nIt was not immediately clear who would replace him. His predecessor was also forced to resign last May after saying the son of a garbage collector would be ineligible to serve as a judge.<\/p>\n
Zend faced outrage on social media Sunday after the television interview.
\nWhen asked in an interview on private satellite channel Sada Al-Balad on Friday about a case involving journalists accused of defaming him and whether he would jail them, Zind said he would imprison anyone.
\n\u201cEven if it\u2019s a prophet, God\u2019s peace and blessings be upon him,\u201d Zind said, using the Islamic saying of reverence spoken by Muslims only when referring to the Prophet Mohammed.
\nUpon realising what he had said, Zind immediately stopped and said: \u201cI ask for forgiveness from God.\u201d
\nHe further said any \u201cwrongdoer, whatever his identity — even judges\u201d would be jailed if found guilty.
\nZind\u2019s remarks triggered outrage on social media networks immediately after the interview, with angry tweets continuing to pour in on Sunday.
\nCairo-based Al-Azhar, a prestigious learning centre of Sunni Islam, even issued a warning.
\nAngry Egyptians launched the Twitter hashtag \u201ctrial for Zind\u201d as they lashed out at the minister, who only in January had angered human rights groups after he called for the \u201cmass killing\u201d of outlawed Muslim Brotherhood supporters.
\n\u201cAt least he should be sacked and then put on trial. This issue is not a joke,\u201d said one tweet on Sunday.
\n\u201cGod will take revenge,\u201d said another.
\nZind clarified in a separate telephone interview with private network CBC television on Saturday that his remark was a mere \u201cslip of tongue\u201d.
\nThey were \u201cmeant in a hypothetical sense … but the Muslim Brotherhood supporters seized on them\u201d.
\nAl-Azhar warned against insulting the Prophet Mohammed.
\n\u201cAll those involved in public discourse and in the media must respect the name of the Prophet,\u201d it said in a statement without naming Zind.
\n\u201cHe should not be subjected to any insult even if it\u2019s unintentional.\u201d
\nIn January, Zind said in an interview with the same Sada al-Balad channel that he \u201cwould not be satisfied until 10,000 Brotherhood members were killed for every martyr\u201d from the armed forces and the police.
\nHuman Rights Watch said his remarks encouraged the \u201cslaughter\u201d of political opponents.
\nEgyptian authorities have cracked down on the Muslim Brotherhood movement after the army ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.
\nHundreds of Brotherhood supporters have been killed and thousands more jailed in the crackdown, while several of its leaders including Morsi have been sentenced to death or lengthy jail terms.<\/p>\n
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