CAIRO, June 25 (Reuters) – The trial began on Wednesday of 13 Egyptian men accused of taking part in mob sexual assaults on women during rallies including celebrations this month for the election of the new president, who has demanded authorities crack down on the crime.
The men have been charged over five cases this year involving nine women who were stripped, sexually assaulted and beaten by gangs of men around Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the heart of the 2011 revolution and a focus for gatherings.
After the attack on the woman on June 8, during a rally to celebrate the victory of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the president called on citizens “to reinstate the true spirit of ethical and moral values in Egyptian society” and the state to “robustly enforce the law”.
Violent group attacks on women in crowded public places have been rampant at the protests and gatherings that have taken place since the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak.
Sexual assaults are often hushed up by the victim’s family as they try to salvage her reputation. When women do come forward, they face a male-dominated police force whose members are not adequately trained to deal with such sensitive cases.
A U.N. report on women last year said 99.3 percent of women and girls had been subjected to sexual harassment in Egypt…
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