Presenter jailed for interviewing gay man

An Egyptian television presenter has been sentenced to one year of hard labour for interviewing a gay man last year. The Giza court also fined Mohamed al-Ghiety $167 for 'promoting homosexuality' on his privately owned LTC channel. BBC News reports that the man, whose identity was not revealed, had talked about life as a sex worker. Homosexuality is not explicitly criminalised in Egypt, however, the authorities have been increasingly cracking down on the LGBT community. They routinely arrest people suspected of engaging in consensual homosexual conduct on charges of 'debauchery', immorality or blasphemy. In addition to the jail term and fine, the misdemeanours court also ordered Ghiety to be put under surveillance for one year after serving his sentence.