Three sentenced to prison in Egypt over filming video of femicide victim Naira Ashraf's body

Three sentenced to prison in Egypt over filming video of femicide victim Naira Ashraf's body
Two Egyptian female nurses and one man were sentenced to six months in prison over filming and leaking a video that showed Naira Ashraf's body at the morgue before the autopsy.
2 min read
Egypt - Cairo
15 August, 2022
Mohamed Adel (C), the defendant in the murder of university of Mansoura student Naira Ashraf, is surrounded by guards during as he is taken out of the defender's box, after his first trial session. [Getty]

An Egyptian court handed down two Egyptian female nurses and one man six months in prison over filming and leaking a video that showed the dead body of femicide victim Naira Ashraf at the morgue before the autopsy, local news outlet El-Watan reported on Sunday evening.

The three were also ordered to pay a total of 50,000 Egyptian pounds (about US$2,600) each as a fine and 20,000 (about US$1,000( as bail to suspend the verdict and be able to appeal it before a higher court, the report added.

One nurse has been acquitted.

The graphic video in question shows deep stab wounds in the victim's uncovered body.

Ashraf's family had earlier told local news outlets that they were deeply shocked to see the video, which was shared online, suing the hospital that hosted the morgue.

The victim was murdered by her classmate on 20 June outside the Mansoura University campus, northwest of the Egyptian capital of Cairo. Her killing sparked mass outrage in Egypt and underlined deep problems of violence against women in the country.

The killer, Mohamed Adel, confessed to stabbing her and to slitting her throat after she had repeatedly turned down his marriage proposals.

Adel was sentenced to death by hanging about two weeks later in the fastest trial in Egypt's history.

Following Ashraf's murder, similar incidents took place across the Middle East - in countries including Egypt, Jordan, and the UAE - which have sparked calls for enhanced protections for women.

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Last week, a 20-year-old man Islam had been referred to a speedy trial over the alleged pre-meditated murder of his classmate in Sharkia province, north of Cairo, also for refusing to marry him.

Statistically, around 7.8 million women undergo a form of gender-based violence annually, whether perpetrated by a spouse/fiancé or individuals in her close circles or from strangers in public places, according to a UN survey released in 2015.