Egypt governor bans 'unpatriotic' Mickey Mouse from schools

Egyptian children in one of the country's provinces are coming back to school this year with one minor change, Disney characters have been blacklisted.

The governor of Qalioubiya, north of the capital, announced the move this week ordering all depictions of the much-loved cartoon animals to be removed from schools and replaced by images of "military heroes".

"We need to replace the images of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck with images of famous Egyptians and military martyrs so children look up to them as role models," Alaa Marzouq told domestic media.

"All these characters are US-made, while we have many honourable figures… who will deepen the children's patriotism and love for the nation," he added.

The governor's decision has been widely mocked on social media, with many users arguing that authorities need to focus on tackling overcrowded classrooms and reforming outdated teaching methods and curriculum.

Other users said the move to emboldened kindergarten and primary classrooms with war heroes was part of an ongoing campaign to "militarise" the education system.

About 22 million students in some 60,000 public schools across the North African country began their school year on Sunday.

A nine-year-old student was killed in a stampede at his primary school on the first day of the academic year, local media reported.

This is not the first time Egyptian authorities have taken action over Mickey Mouse.

In December 2015, a 22-year-old Facebook user was sentenced to three years in prison after posting a photoshopped photo of General-turned-President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi with Mickey Mouse ears.