Sales rep left ‘drowning in blood’ as stalker knifes her in the FACE two years after she revealed his sexual harassment
AN Egyptian woman who was left disfigured and jobless after being slashed across the face with a knife by a man who sexually harassed her two years ago has told of her horror.
Somaya Ebeid, a sales representative, spoke out in 2015 as a victim of sexual harassment after a stranger physically assaulted her at a Cairo shopping centre.
Two years later, the 25-year-old was left needing 50 stitches in her face after she claims the same perpetrator went after her with a blade - in retaliation for reporting him to the police.
The suspect, only identified as Hany A., allegedly waited for her in the middle of the day on October 14 at a crowded street in Cairo’s Heliopolis and attacked her from behind.
Recalling the knife attack, Somaya told The Sun Online: “I went to a pharmacy to get some medicine and when I came out I heard someone yelling my name several times telling me to stop.
“When I looked back, I found the same man who harassed me at the shopping centre two years ago."
She added: “All I thought he was going to do was make a scene by insulting me, but nothing more. I never thought he would to try to slay me in broad daylight in a crowded street.”
“As I rushed to get to my car to get away, he came from behind and put a knife to my neck. But when I tried to pull away, he slashed my face open.
“I was drowning in blood and I didn’t know where it was coming from. Blood covered my face, my hair and my clothes. I thought he had cut my neck open.”
Sofaya suffered a 20cm cut from her cheek to behind the ear and had to have more than 50 stitches in her face.
She described how her attacker did not run after he knifed her and told how callous onlookers watched as she lay pouring out with blood.
“I was crying for help in the middle of the street begging for anyone to drive me to the nearest hospital,” she said. “But people were just standing and watching what happened - some even came out of the cafes and restaurants and just watched.”
Eventually, a kind passerby rushed Somaya to a nearby hospital where she underwent surgery to stitch up her face, which lasted three hours and cost £2,607.
Her attack came days after Cairo was branded the most dangerous city for women, according to an international poll carried out by .
Somaya made headlines in Egypt in 2015 when she opened up about being sexually harassed by a man in a Heliopolis shopping centre after she claimed police failed to protect her.
CCTV footage from the shopping centre shows the man talking to Somaya before he slaps her in the face after she appears to defend herself.
Security officials can be seen intervening to prevent him from hurting her further.
The man was jailed for just two weeks on sexual harassment and physical assault charges. He was released after paying a fine of only £4.
Somaya appeared on popular talk show "Sabaya El-Kheir" - which is “Good Morning” in Arabic - to express dissatisfaction at the weak punishment given to her harasser.
Instead of receiving empathy, she was shamed for wearing "tank top and tight jeans" as a justification for the assault.
Private pictures of Somaya on a beach wearing a bikini and drinking alcohol - a taboo in the conservative Muslim country - were also aired on the show without consent.
“I handed producers my mobile because of their ‘rules’ with the promise they would give it back to me after the interview. The next thing I knew, they aired my personal photos taken from my phone.”
“I’m still getting abuse and people are still calling me a ‘wh*re’ for the pictures. They have no empathy at all. But even women wearing a hijab get harassed. So there is no justification for what happened to me.”
Now bearing a scar on her face, Somaya says it is a constant reminder of the day which ruined her life and cost her job.
She still needs two more surgeries and lengthy laser sessions over the next 18 months - expensive treatment she can’t afford.
“I don't look at the mirror the way I used to. I cover half of my face with my hand and look at the other half,” she said. “I do not recognise the half that’s been sliced. If I accidentally pass by a mirror, I stop to see who is that person, then I realise that it’s the new me.”
Suspect Hany A. has been charged with attempted murder and faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
has been set up to help raise money for Somaya’s treatments.
