Thursday, November 16, 2006

This is Islam?

OrthoMom and others were very upset by the Modesty Patrols gone awry in Meah Shearim and Geulah. I too think that they were over-the-top (pun, well, yeah, intended).

Anyway, seems that there's a situation in Cairo that is way-out-of-hand.

Silence and Fury in Cairo After Sexual Attacks on Women

There is fear in the shops along Talat Harb Street, and shame. It is not because of what the people who work here say they witnessed, the crowds of men groping women and pulling at their clothing. They fear the police returning, and they are shamed by their own silence.

Recently, reports surfaced on Egyptian blogs, on television and in newspapers that groups of men had roamed the city streets during a holiday weekend and attacked young women — actually chased them down in packs. There were accounts from witnesses and victims.

“All of a sudden, these guys attacked us and came in between us and harassed us,” a reveler told Al Ahram, the semi-official newspaper. “They groped us in a way that is worse than anyone on the crowded street could imagine.”

Mr. Abbas is a young man who never goes anywhere without his digital cameras. He said he witnessed packs of young men hunting down young women, grabbing at their bodies. “I saw two girls wearing those khaliji abaya,” he said referring to the black flowing gowns favored by women in the Persian Gulf region. “Guys surrounded them and pulled their clothes and veils and groped them.”

...Last year, the police watched as thugs sexually assaulted women who protested a referendum to change the way the president is elected.

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