Cairo: An Egyptian court on Tuesday sentenced famous singer Sherine on charges of defaming the country after she suggested at a concert that drinking from the River Nile could make people sick, legal sources said.
The Moqattam Misdemeanour Court in Cairo also ordered Sherine to pay 5,000 Egyptian pounds (Dh1,041) in bail in order to stay out of prison pending an appeal against the sentence, they added.
Sherine, 37, did not show up for the verdict.
Last November, the singer sparked an outcry in Egypt after a video clip surfaced online showing her being asked by a fan at a concert outside Egypt to sing a hit song of hers praising the Nile, the country’s main source of water.
In response, the singer mockingly says: “Drinking from the Nile will get you Bilharzia. Better, you drink Evian!” — referring to a brand of French bottled water.
The remarks prompted a lawyer to file a legal complaint against Sherine for allegedly insulting Egypt. She later apologised for what she called a “silly joke”.
However, state radio and television stations stopped broadcasting her songs.
The Egyptian musicians union, which licenses entertainers in the country, banned Sherine from performing at concerts for two months, starting from November 14.
The case marks the latest crackdown on controversial performers in Egypt.
In January, another court sentenced pop singer Shyma to two years in prison on charges of inciting debauchery for performing in a racy music video. The sentence was later cut to one year in jail on appeal.
