Residents of the Egyptian city of Mansoura were rocked this week by the gruesome murder of a university student whose throat was slit on a busy street in front of hundreds of witnesses.
A video of the woman's murder on Monday morning was widely circulated on social media, triggering a nationwide outcry.
Following investigations ordered by the country’s prosecutor general, it was revealed that the murdered student, Nayera Ashraf, 21, had rebuffed repeated romantic advances from her killer.
The killer, in a confession given to prosecutors, said he had proposed marriage to Ashraf and her refusal led him to kill her.
The murder has also rekindled debate over the abuses suffered by women in the Arab world’s most populous nation, where a series of sexual assault cases has taken centre stage over the past couple of years in what many are calling Egypt’s #MeToo moment.
“I arrived at the spot where she was murdered moments after she had fallen on the floor. I was running to cross the street when he slit her throat twice,” Rowan Ayman, 21, a student at Mansoura University arts faculty and a close friend of Ashraf’s, told The National.
“She had already been stabbed multiple times in her chest and neck before he slit her throat. The amount of blood was too much to handle and I just fainted looking at the whole thing.”
Following Ashraf’s murder, several women residents of Mansoura told The National that they have been afraid to leave their homes unchaperoned.
Outside the university's Toshka gate, near where the murder took place, a group of men waited in the scorching heat to escort women students back to their homes.
Nearby, a memorial for Ashraf was set up on the spot where traces of her blood could still be seen on the pavement.
“We held a vigil for her after the funeral. All her friends and colleagues attended it and left mementos and photos of her,” Ms Ayman said. “She was a prominent member of the student union and she was really well liked.”
On Thursday afternoon, mourners put up a large poster in her memory over the spot where she was killed.
In the photo on the poster, Ashraf is wearing a veil, though she was not veiled when she was alive — something that has angered many of her close friends.
“It is insulting to put a veil on her in the photo,” a 20-year-old student at Mansoura University told The National.
“It’s like they were posthumously covering her up, which to me and a lot of people here sends the message that the way she dressed and her uncovered hair somehow played a part in her murder.”
The student asked to remain anonymous for fear that her opinion on the veil could cause backlash from her family and friends.
One of Egypt's conservative commentators, Mabrouk Attia, a TV presenter and professor of Islamic law at Al Azhar University, said in a widely denounced video that the way Ashraf dressed might have played a part in her murder. He urged women to cover up to save their lives.
The National Council for Women and its head, prominent feminist activist Maya Morsi, filed a lawsuit against Attia for his comments.
“The blood of the Mansoura student and others like her is on the hands of every cleric who went out and spoke about girls' clothes and how that they are somehow to blame for horrific incidents such as this,” Ms Morsi said in a statement.
Attia's opinion was also denounced by prominent women’s rights lawyer Nehad Abou El Qomsan, who posted a widely circulated Instagram live video in which she lauded the speed with which Ashraf's murderer was apprehended.
Ms Abou El Qomsan highlighted in her video how widespread incidents such as this are in Egypt and how more measures need to be taken to protect women.
What was most shocking was the fact that the murderer — who has since been referred to a criminal court in what is being called the fastest trial in Egypt’s history, set to take place on June 26 — was one of the faculty of arts’ top students.
“He was a fourth year student, one of the best in the whole university and also a troubled killer,” Ms Ayman said.
“It’s difficult to wrap one’s head around that. People always associate a college degree with civility or being polite or whatever, so I think a lot of people are shocked that this isn’t always the case.”
Residents who live or work on the street where the murder took place told The National that since Monday, mourners have been visiting Ashraf's memorial, with many breaking down in tears.
“I think the emotional state people are in is definitely because of how publicised the case got in the media,” said Abel Hegab, who witnessed the murder that happened a few metres from his shop.
“I mean, the loss of such a young woman is always a tragedy but things like this happen in Egypt and people don’t get so torn up.
“One man came here the day after and started ripping off his clothes in a state of hysteria. Everyone heard him screaming profanities at the killer who was in jail at the time and challenging him to try it again. It was like everyone lost their mind."
Many residents are calling Monday the blackest day in the city’s memory because, in addition to Ashraf's murder, a young man drove his car off a bridge and killed himself because his father refused to allow him to marry the woman he loved.
Furthermore, on the same day, a car accident in the city claimed the lives of three people, locals said.
As Sunday’s trial approaches, many of Ashraf's friends and family are concerned that her killer will not receive a death sentence, something they think he deserves.
A text chat between Ashraf and her killer shown to The National by Ms Ayman contained several death threats sent in the days leading up to her murder.
“I will separate your head from your body after what you did to me,” one message read, referring to her repeated rejections of his advances, which had been going on for months, leading Ashraf to stay home since the start of the spring term and only leave the house for exams, her friends said.
“This chat has not yet been shared with the authorities,” Ms Ayman said. “Her family, on the advice of their legal team, is keeping it under wraps until they see what strategy the killer’s lawyers take in their defence of him.
“What I and many people are worried about is that they prove that he was on drugs or that he wasn’t in a fit state of mind, which could definitely give him a more lenient sentence.”
Ashraf's friends referenced a similar incident last year in the Suez Canal city of Ismailia when a man beheaded another in the middle of a busy street.
“The Ismailia killer got the death sentence but then they reduced it to 15 years. I am worried this is what will happen to Nayera’s killer and that, in a decade or so, he will be out on the street killing again,” Ms Ayman said.
The way that Mansoura University reacted to Ashraf's murder has angered many of the city’s residents. The first statement issued by the university on Monday said that the murder did not take place inside the campus, which many people felt was an act of distancing itself from the case.
“They didn’t even offer condolences in the first notice they posted. That is not right. Two of your students’ lives are ruined and you respond in this way. That was truly disappointing,” Ms Ayman said.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Profile Periscope Media
Founder: Smeetha Ghosh, one co-founder (anonymous)
Launch year: 2020
Employees: four – plans to add another 10 by July 2021
Financing stage: $250,000 bootstrap funding, approaching VC firms this year
Investors: Co-founders
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
CABINET%20OF%20CURIOSITIES%20EPISODE%201%3A%20LOT%2036
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
RESULTS
Bantamweight: Victor Nunes (BRA) beat Azizbek Satibaldiev (KYG). Round 1 KO
Featherweight: Izzeddin Farhan (JOR) beat Ozodbek Azimov (UZB). Round 1 rear naked choke
Middleweight: Zaakir Badat (RSA) beat Ercin Sirin (TUR). Round 1 triangle choke
Featherweight: Ali Alqaisi (JOR) beat Furkatbek Yokubov (UZB). Round 1 TKO
Featherweight: Abu Muslim Alikhanov (RUS) beat Atabek Abdimitalipov (KYG). Unanimous decision
Catchweight 74kg: Mirafzal Akhtamov (UZB) beat Marcos Costa (BRA). Split decision
Welterweight: Andre Fialho (POR) beat Sang Hoon-yu (KOR). Round 1 TKO
Lightweight: John Mitchell (IRE) beat Arbi Emiev (RUS). Round 2 RSC (deep cuts)
Middleweight: Gianni Melillo (ITA) beat Mohammed Karaki (LEB)
Welterweight: Handesson Ferreira (BRA) beat Amiran Gogoladze (GEO). Unanimous decision
Flyweight (Female): Carolina Jimenez (VEN) beat Lucrezia Ria (ITA), Round 1 rear naked choke
Welterweight: Daniel Skibinski (POL) beat Acoidan Duque (ESP). Round 3 TKO
Lightweight: Martun Mezhlumyan (ARM) beat Attila Korkmaz (TUR). Unanimous decision
Bantamweight: Ray Borg (USA) beat Jesse Arnett (CAN). Unanimous decision
Result
Qualifier: Islamabad United beat Karachi Kings by eight wickets
Fixtures
Tuesday, Lahore: Eliminator 1 - Peshawar Zalmi v Quetta Gladiators
Wednesday, Lahore: Eliminator 2 – Karachi Kings v Winner of Eliminator 1
Sunday, Karachi: Final – Islamabad United v Winner of Eliminator 2
The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
A little about CVRL
Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.
One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases.
The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Springtime in a Broken Mirror,
Mario Benedetti, Penguin Modern Classics
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
