Tom and Jerry teaches children extremism - Head of Egypt's Information Service

The head of Egypt's Information Service has blamed Tom and Jerry for the rise of ISIS - claiming the characters encourage extremism and teach children that you can blow people up.
Ambassador Salah Abdel Sadek said the cartoon as well as video games and 'violent' movies helped to spark violence and extremism across the Arab world.

He told an audience at Cairo University that Tom and Jerry contributed to the notion that violence was a 'natural' part of life.

According to Egyptian Streets, he said: '[The cartoon] portrays the violence in a funny manner and sends the message that, yes, I can hit him…and I can blow him up with explosives. It becomes set in [the viewers’] mind that this is natural.'

He added that it has become common place for young men to spend hours playing violent video games and that the gamer will be 'happy and content'.

The website said that the Egyptian government had not yet taken steps  to censor Tom and Jerry or video games - despite Salah Abdel Sadek's comments.

LLB