• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Body
  • Daily Resist
  • POLITICS
  • Travel
  • Music
  • Theatre
  • Film
  • TV
  • Sports
  • Business
  • Men
  • Marriage Equality
  • Space
  • Trans Rights
  • Books
  • Science
  • Gay Iconography
  • TowleREAD

Gays in Egypt Observing Increased Arrests by Government

April 17, 2014 by Andy Towle

Recent arrests in Egypt have the gay community there very worried, the Guardian reports:

EgyptActivists interviewed by the Guardian said they had documented up to nine raids across the country since October 2013 – an unusually high rate of arrests. Most significantly, at least seven raids have seen people arrested at home rather than at parties or known meeting places, raising concerns that the community is facing the start of a targeted crackdown.

The latest and most concerning raid saw four men seized from their east Cairo apartment on 1 April within hours of signing the lease, according to activists. Within a week, the four were given jail terms of up to eight years – sentences unusual for both their length and the speed at which they were handed down.

No one seems to be sure of the reason behind the increasing arrests but there are a few hypotheses:

 Some think the raids are simply another example of the aggression aimed at all kinds of dissidents in recent months. Also, several of the raids may have been caused by complaints from neighbours, rather than instigated by the state itself.

…Many wonder if the government wants to assure a largely homophobic Egyptian society that – despite ousting Islamist president Mohamed Morsi last summer – they can be as conservative as the man they replaced. April's arrests, for instance, came soon after a police chief announced a special taskforce to arrest atheists.

or…Another explanation is that widespread coverage of the raids would help distract the public from the government's failings – much as the media storm sparked by the 2001 arrest of 52 men at the Queen Boat, a gay nightclub in Cairo, did for Hosni Mubarak's regime.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Egypt, Egypt, News

Recent Posts

  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    3 hours ago
  • Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    4 hours ago
  • Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    5 hours ago
  • ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    5 hours ago
Previous Post: « X-Men Director Bryan Singer Accused of Sexual Abuse of Underage Teen
Next Post: Joel McHale Sends Billy Eichner Over the Edge for Loving Jake Gyllenhaal: VIDEO »

Primary Sidebar

  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

  • Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

  • Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

Recent Posts

  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    3 hours ago
  • Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    4 hours ago
  • Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    5 hours ago
  • ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    5 hours ago
  • Schumer Urged to Deny Committee Seats to Hawley, Cruz, and Other Republicans Who ‘Incited Deadly Insurrection’

    Schumer Urged to Deny Committee Seats to Hawley, Cruz, and Other Republicans Who ‘Incited Deadly Insurrection’

    6 hours ago
  • ‘QAnon Shaman’ and Capitol Insurrectionist Jacob Chansley Regrets Being ‘Duped’ by Trump: WATCH

    ‘QAnon Shaman’ and Capitol Insurrectionist Jacob Chansley Regrets Being ‘Duped’ by Trump: WATCH

    6 hours ago
  • Alice Hoagland, Mother of Gay 9/11 Hero Mark Bingham and LGBTQ Ally, Has Died

    Alice Hoagland, Mother of Gay 9/11 Hero Mark Bingham and LGBTQ Ally, Has Died

    7 hours ago
  • Chances for Trump Senate Impeachment Conviction Fading: REPORT

    Chances for Trump Senate Impeachment Conviction Fading: REPORT

    7 hours ago
  • Thousands of National Guard Troops Banished to Cold Capitol Parking Garage Returned to Congressional Buildings Following Outcry

    Thousands of National Guard Troops Banished to Cold Capitol Parking Garage Returned to Congressional Buildings Following Outcry

    7 hours ago
  • GOP Rep. Andy Harris Stopped from Bringing Gun on to House Floor

    GOP Rep. Andy Harris Stopped from Bringing Gun on to House Floor

    8 hours ago

Most Commented

  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Footer

Copyright © 2021 · Log in