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An Egyptian minibus driver who was stripped to his underwear after being accused of sexual harassment might himself have been the sufferer of a scam, Egyptian prosecutors say.
Initial studies urged the unnamed man had tried to bother or kidnap a lone girl onboard his vehicle.
A crowd intervened and forced him to stand on top of the bus in his undies. He was once arrested by way of police.
Pictures of the incident have unfold on Egyptian social media.
However, police have considering launched the driving force and arrested a man on suspicion of inciting the gang as a part of an attempted theft.
It follows a number of top-profile incidents of sexual harassment in the u . s . in up to date months. Activists say that ladies who revel in verbal or bodily abuse are often left out or sufferer-shamed.
‘Let’s drink espresso’
One of essentially the most prominent cases got here final month while a tender girl, Menna Gubran, uploaded a video of a man she accused of sexually harassing her on the streets of the capital.
In the clip, the person – later identified as Mahmoud Soleiman – can be noticed coming near and alluring Ms Gubran for coffee as she waits for a bus. He apologised and left the scene after she rebuked him.
She later said that the person had circled her in his automotive and made inappropriate feedback and simplest left when she began filming.
But Ms Gubran faced a backlash from a few social media users who attacked her appearance and defended the behaviour of her alleged harasser. Mr Soleiman later stated he could sue her for defamation.
But she found beef up in an not likely position: Al-Azhar, Egypt’s best Islamic institution.
“Harassment is haram unlawful below Islamic legislation and is totally condemned, and cannot be justified,” it said in an announcement.
“Some other folks have attempted to use the girl’s garments or behaviour as an excuse for the crime of a harasser.”
Me too: i used to be sexually careworn at ELEVEN Harassed girls tag this guy for lend a hand
There were different high-profile circumstances related to harassment in Egypt in latest weeks.
In the coastal town of Alexandria, a well-liked summer time holiday destination, a person was fatally stabbed in an altercation with another guy who had allegedly harassed his wife.
Another incident in July noticed Lebanese tourist Mona el-Mazbouh jailed for 8 years and fined for “generating and publishing indecent subject material” after posting a strongly-worded video towards harassment she mentioned she experienced there.
Her case bore echoes of the arrest of Egyptian human rights activist Amal Fathy in May after she uploaded a video criticising the government over the extent of sexual harassment within the usa and other human rights problems.
Amnesty International has stated it is uncertain precisely which charges she faces, but delivered that she were investigated for “spreading false information that harms nationwide security”.
A UN report found that over NINETY NINE% of Egyptian women had experienced sexual harassment, even as a 2017 ballot by means of the Thomson Reuters Foundation defined Cairo as the “world’s most dangerous city for women”.
Egypt moved to take on the problem by introducing jail sentences and fines for offenders in 2014, however Human Rights Watch has mentioned that sexual harassment is “endemic” in Egypt and that prosecutions stay rare.
