Egypt: several arrests after the suicide of a teenage girl victim of harassment

The 17-year-old was apparently blackmailed by two young men after she refused to have sex with them (picture illustration)

AFP - THOMAS COEX, -

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

In Egypt, three people were arrested and brought before the prosecution following the suicide of a schoolgirl after the internet broadcast of a naked photomontage of the 17-year-old girl.

A tragedy that angered Internet users who demanded that justice be done.

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With our correspondent in Cairo, 

Bassant Khaled ended his life by swallowing poison on December 23.

But it was a week later that social networks brought the matter to light by publishing the suicide note in which Bassant explained that she could no longer bear the social pressure after the publication of fake photos of them on the net by two young people who blackmailed her into having a relationship with her.

An unbearable pressure in the rural environment where she lived and which was exacerbated by the mockery of one of her teachers who was also arrested.

A toll-free number for women

The three defendants face prison terms of up to life.

If the parents defend their daughter today, some Internet users had criticized them for their lack of support in Bassant before the tragedy.

The National Council for Women, an official body, has created a toll-free number for all women victims of blackmail on the internet to denounce their torturers.  

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• Egypt

• Womens rights

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• Criminality