Mustafa Abdou, a sports announcer on Egyptian satellite-television channel Dream, has been referred to investigation after describing Algeria — known as "the country of a million martyrs" for its long fight against the French occupation — as "the country of a million bastards." Abdou’s comment came in response to alleged acts of Algerian hooliganism directed against Egyptian football fans during and after the recent Egypt-Algeria World Cup qualifying match in Sudan.
Dream owner Ahmed Bahgat criticized the sportscaster’s statement, describing it as "an abusive remark against a sister country."
"Despite their insolence, we don’t want to behave like the Algerians," said Dream Chairman Ossama Ezz Eddin. "We like to talk politely on our channel and relay our message to the rest of the world in an appropriate manner."
Abdou, for his part, appeared unrepentant, saying he had not been informed of the pending investigation. "I would leave immediately if they did such a thing to me," he warned. "I will continue cursing the Algerians until they apologize to us."
"The president’s son [Gamal Mubarak, son of President Hosni Mubarak] directed harsh remarks at the Algerians on live TV," he added. "I only did the same."
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
