Slowness, smooth movements, and expressive gazes create an atmosphere of mystery and special charm around Egyptian women. Egypt is a country in the northeastern part of Africa and on the Sinai Peninsula with a population of about 80 million people. In the north, Egypt is washed by the waters of the Mediterranean, in the east – by the Red Sea. Both seas are connected by the artificially constructed Suez Canal.

When she first created her account in 2012, she had no idea what to expect. Online dating was new to Egypt during the pre-Tinder era and most users were only resorting to it for hookups. It shocked me to learn, in the course of investigation that one gang leader, Yahia, is gay and actively posting online about his own sex work. We’ve been told about dozens of attacks like this – carried out by multiple gangs. There are only a few reports of attackers being arrested.

Traditionally in Egypt sexual relations outside of marriage are taboo — in fact, any dating that happens is generally short and geared towards getting engaged. Sexual health education, meanwhile, is This content practically non-existent, and nearly all Egyptian women have experienced sexual harassment. In 2014 Egypt’s top Islamic authority issued a religious ruling prohibiting the use of online dating.

Understanding the Egyptian dating culture

While millions of women in other countries are striving to pursue career goals and succeed in life, Egyptian women continue to focus on their marriage and families. Therefore, if you are looking for a reliable and loyal wife, then a modern Egyptian woman would be the best option for you. Not long ago, matchmaking was a noble and much needed profession. The new generation watched matchmakers in black and white movies filmed during the first half of the last century and, to a large extent, in its second half as well. Closest to families than some relatives, they knew the secrets of the girls and their flaws. Mothers of girls at marriage age wouldn’t dare step on them and jeopardize their daughters’ fates.

The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights has documented more than 230 LGBTQ-related arrests from October 2013 to March 2017, which is more than in the previous 13 years combined. Harmonica’s founders say they aim to support the dominant culture, not subvert it. Instead, by creating an app that mimics some elements of traditional matchmaking, he and his team have come up with “another solution that fits our generation”. In the onset of corona times in Egypt , Hawaya saw a surge in the number of users and their activity on the app. Nehal repeatedly had men “ghost” on her after several days or weeks of intense online and real time flirting. At the same, the situation varies by class, according to Anthropology Professor Farha Ghannam at Swarthmore University.

“At first I tried because I was curious about how it works, but then it turned into exploring more options and meeting new people that I wouldn’t usually meet in everyday life,” says 33-year-old Ereny. She goes on to say that while she was secretive about using these applications at first, she is now more open about it due to their ubiquitous use among people in her social circles. While technically the first online dating experience was created in the early 1990s with the website match.com, online dating has grown more and more popular when mobile applications such as Tinder and Bumble first came out in the early 2010s. Even though his love story could be deemed a “swipe of luck,” the reason why Adham and his wife got along so well was also due to common interests, which could have been detected on any dating app or website that runs compatibility tests.

They do, however, all agree that despite what Western governments might claim, their funding is going directly to the suppression and targeting of LGBT people in the area. The alert to users follows reports from rights activists and the press about just how regional governments are aggressively using digital platforms to attack the LGBTQ community. The logo of the dating app for gay and bisexual men Grindr is shown on the display of a smartphone on April 22, 2020 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images)Although homosexuality is not strictly illegal in Egypt, individuals of the LGBTQ community are often accused of debauchery or breaking public morality and are subject to legal proceedings. Seven individuals were apprehended in 2017 for waving a pride flag at a rock show. Most importantly, Egyptian mail-order brides know for sure what they want to get on dating websites.

The dating app built for young Egyptians

“It was the only time in my life that I tried to kill myself,” Laith says. One policeman stubbed a cigarette out on his arm, he told me, showing me the scar. Egypt is one of the most strategically important Western allies in the Middle East and receives billions of dollars in US and EU support every year.

We created a video-based social app because you can express yourself much better with videos and find and meet up new people in the most fun way possible. The end result was a list of recommendations, some of which are already showing up in Grindr. Since October, Grindr users in 130 countries have been able to change the way the app appears on the home screen, replacing the Grindr icon and name with an inconspicuous calculator app or other utility. Grindr also now features an option for a PIN, too, so that even if the phone is unlocked, the app won’t open without an additional passcode. If you’re stopped at a checkpoint , police won’t be able to spot Grindr by flipping through your phone.

Wrapped in dark clothes from head to toe, they move slowly and unhurriedly along the streets. Egypt is one of the most ancient civilizations with more than six thousand years of history. The remains of ancient civilizations, great pyramids, mysterious temples, and richest museums always attracted foreigners. At all times, charming Egyptian women with mysterious eyes and gentle figures used to drive men from other countries crazy. Egyptian girls were always considered sought and eligible brides among single men from other countries. And human rights organizations about authorities in the area using online platforms to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community.

“The police talk to people and flirt with them for days or weeks until they agree to go on a date,” Darwish explained. “Ahead of the first meeting, the police person asks them to bring, for example, some condoms,” she added. In a country where it is usually more okay for men to express or explore their sexuality and women are shamed for exercising the same rights, female users tend to be slightly more ‘secretive’ about venturing into the online dating world.

Empowering women in male-dominated industry through Meralco’s #Mbrace

At the time of writing this article, Tinder ranks as the fifth most popular app in the App Store in Egypt. Users are swiping, messaging, and often meeting in person, but they aren’t announcing it to the world, even when their connections turn into an official commitment, like the cases of Salma and Adham. He claims police then made a fake profile for him on the WhosHere app, and digitally altered his photos to make them look explicit. He says they then mocked up a conversation on the app which appeared to show him offering sex work.

“In the past 10 years, people have been systematically arrested through entrapment on gay dating websites,” she told DW, adding that “over this period, the numbers have remained more or less the same.” Hawaya was established in April 2017 by Sameh Saleh, Tamer Saleh, Ali Khaled, and Shaima Ali. They are four Egyptian entrepreneurs who wanted to use technology to improve the matchmaking process. Hawaya’s mission is to enable Muslims around the world to choose and communicate with potential life partners in a safe technological environment based on respect for inherent cultures and traditions.

Free online dating with our free sites dating from the giza, mashrou’ leila, and by registering to be a man. While homosexuality is not explicitly illegal in Egypt, these authorities are citing a law criminalizing sex work in order to justify targeting the LGBT community. This leads many in the community to live in fear and hiding, making it difficult for them to make meaningful connections with each other. Instead of meeting publicly, they are forced to talk on dating apps and social media platforms. But even simply using these apps has been grounds for arrest based on morality laws in Egypt.