An Egyptian court on Saturday adjourned the case of Coptic telecom mogul and politician Naguib Sawiris, charged with defamation and contempt of Islam. The court set the next hearing for 11 February.
Islamist lawyer and deputy chairman of the Salafi-led Asala Party Mamdouh Ismail filed a complained against Sawiris, after he posted an image of a bearded Mickey Mouse and a veiled Minnie Mouse on Twitter in June.
The cartoon incident triggered a boycott by some customers of Mobinil, the mobile phone operator his company founded, though Sawiris said the impact had eased by October.
Seven Islamist lawyers led the prosecution, and Sawiris' defense team included the same number of lawyers.
During the trial a verbal dispute almost turned into a fistfight after one of the lawyers described Sawiris as a "criminal."
"The issue of mocking the values of religion is unprecedented,” said lawyer Ali Ahmad Borham, who added that Sawiris' actions were a "deliberate mockery of Islamic clothing and symbols."
Sawiris will face trial on the charge of contempt for religion, judicial sources and Ismail said on Monday.
Sawiris, a prominent figure in Egypt's Coptic Christian community, is a vocal critic of the Islamist parties the have emerged in Egypt since Hosni Mubarak was ousted last February. He is co-founder of the Free Egyptians Party, a liberal party advocating separation of state and religion.
