Popular British-Lebanese TV host Liliane Daoud was arrested from her home in Cairo on Monday night, taken to an undisclosed location and then put aboard an EgyptAir flight to Beirut, said Daoud’s lawyer Zyad Elelaimy.
Eight members of the security forces had stormed stormed her home earlier this evening, the same day she ended her contract with ONtv, and told Daoud she would be deported.
The security forces refused to allow Daoud to make a phone call or to take her phone with her when they apprehended her, Elelaimy said. Her 10-year-old daughter, who holds Egyptian nationality, was left alone in the house when they took Daoud into custody.
The police refused to show a warrant or any other documents justifying Daoud’s arrest or giving her any legal explanation as to the raid, only telling her that she was not allowed to remain in Egypt.
Daoud was one of the few critical voices to remain in Egyptian media after former President Mohamed Morsi was ousted in 2013. There had been uncertainty surrounding the fate of her show, “The Full Picture,” since state-supporting steel tycoon Ahmed Abu Hashima acquired ONtv from its former owner Naguib Sawiris in May.
“The Full Picture” has broadcast on ONtv for the past five years. Daoud used the show as a platform for staunch criticism of some of the current government’s practices, such as forced disappearances and political detentions. Elelaimy said the authorities have been withholding the renewal of Daoud’s work visa for the last four months.
Daoud was not the only one to leave ONtv following the acquisition. Mohamed al-Garhy, the producer of “Manchette” program presented by Gaber al-Karmouty announced on Sunday that both he and Karmouty would be leaving the channel.
source: Mada Masr
