Egyptian Court Arrests Rape Suspects Under Pressure From an Online Campaign

In Egypt, a rape case from 2014 has suddenly come to light thanks to a campaign on social media. A group of seven men then allegedly raped a woman in a luxury hotel in the capital Cairo.

 

The suspects would have filmed their act to blackmail and silence the woman. They have now been arrested after a major online campaign.

The opening of the investigation and arrest of the suspects is a victory for an ever-growing #MeToo movement in Egypt.

An Egyptian Instagram account campaigning against sexual assault in the country brought the rape case to light last month.

The “Assault Police” account was only launched last month and already has almost 200,000 followers.

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Under the hashtag #fairmontincident, which refers to the name of the infamous hotel, massive messages were shared on all kinds of social media platforms. This was done not only by “Assault Police” but also by other activists and concerned citizens.

According to the activists, the fact that the incident was concealed for years has to do with the fact that the perpetrators belong to high-ranking families.

The footage of the rape also forced the victim not to report it to the police. Honour theft is very sensitive for a girl in the Arab world.