Menna Abdelaziz Case: Criminal Court Sentences Rapist to 10 Years in Prison

An Egyptian Court sentenced on Monday 24 May Mazen Ibrahim to 10 years imprisonment on charges of assaulting and defaming TikToker Menna AbdelAziz.

The other six accomplices, who were accused of assaulting and kidnapping Menna AbdelAziz were also sentenced to five years of imprisonment, according to Huda Nasr Allah, Menna’s lawyer’s announcement on Facebook.

On May 2020, Menna AbdelAziz posted a video on Instagram in which she featured facial bruises and openly shared her experience of getting raped, asking for justice.

While the video elicited sympathy from social media users, it also resulted in a wave of victim blaming against Menna. Soon after, videos of Ibrahim and his accomplices were also shared on social media in which they defended themselves and they also shared the video of Menna AbdelAziz being sexually assaulted.

In February, the Egypt Economic Court sentenced Mazen Ibrahim and Shaimaa Shaker to two years of prison, for “sharing videos defying public morality” pertaining to the assault, Ahram Online reported.

Menna AbdelAziz, on the other hand, faced allegations last year for “violating the Egyptian family values” and “misusing social media networks” due to her choice of outfits in her TikTok videos. A social media campaign of support was consequently launched and the hashtag “حق_منة_عبدالعزيز#” (Justice for Menna Abdelaziz) was trending on Facebook and Twitter.

The Public Prosecution ordered her release in September 2020, and transferred her to a rehabilitation center that is specialised in treating women with histories of abuse and trauma.