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Egypt Jails Female Social Media Stars for ‘Indecent’ Behavior

Egypt made history on Monday, when, for the first time, five young women were sentenced to two years each in prison for posting “indecent photos and videos disturbing to public morals.” Each of the convicted was also fined nearly $20,000. Two of the women, Mawada al-Adham and Haneen Hossam, posted several videos in the past year on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram that included dancing, singing and interacting with their millions of followers. The other three women, whose names were not revealed by the state, were accused of conducting “inappropriate” calls with male followers. Egypt has begun to crack down on the use of popular social media in the country, with several other influencers, mostly women, arrested in recent weeks. The short video-sharing app TikTok has become especially popular, mainly due to the restrictions on social gatherings imposed by the government in its fight against the coronavirus.