Egypt jails five women influencers over ‘immoral’ TikTok posts
- Haneen Hossam, Mawada al-Adham and three others each fined US$19,000 and sentenced to two years in prison
- Egyptian lawmakers demand government suspend popular video-sharing app, saying it promotes nudity and immorality
An Egyptian court sentenced five women influencers to two years each in prison on Monday after finding them guilty of promoting immorality and human trafficking by encouraging women to make money building social media followings.
The women, who were also fined 300,000 Egyptian pounds (US$19,000), were accused of running online accounts that violated the values and principles of Egypt, a conservative Muslim nation.
Haneen Hossam, 20, a Cairo University student, was charged over encouraging young women to meet men through a video app and build friendships with them, receiving a fee according to the number of followers watching these chats.
Mawada al-Adham, a TikTok and Instagram influencer with at least 2 million followers, was accused of publishing indecent photos and videos on social media.
The three other women were charged with helping Hossam and Al-Adham manage their social media accounts, according to the public prosecution.
