Sydney: A group of five men raped a Dutch journalist in Cairo`s central Tahrir Square as millions of protestors took to streets demanding the ouster of President Mohammed Mursi.
The journalist is believed to have undergone surgery for horrific injuries sustained in the attack, as a volunteer vigilante group formed to protect women in Tahrir Square said it recorded the highest number of rape attempts on Sunday.
Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment said it had recorded 44 cases of sexual assaults and harassment against women on Sunday night, the highest number it had encountered since the group was formed in November 2012.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Dina Zakaria, an Egyptian journalist reporting for the `Egypt 25` news channel, reported that a Dutch journalist in Tahrir Square was raped by men who dub themselves revolutionists.
Media reports said the journalist was apparently interning with an Egyptian organization and had gone to the square to take photos of the demonstrations.
The incident occurred following the sexual assault of other female journalists covering the protest in Egypt in recent years, including French television journalist Sonia Dridi and Lara Logan, a correspondent for US network CBS, the report said.
In a report, Amnesty International said last year that such attacks appeared to be designed to intimidate women and prevent them from fully participating in public life.
(ANI)
