CAIRO (Moustafa Suleiman, AlArabiya.net)
Egyptian police arrested laborer Ibrahim Ali after he killed his wife on their wedding night. Failing to deflower her, Ali thought his bride was not a virgin and killed her, assuming she had an illicit relationship.
The bride told them her husband had stabbed her and then run away. The neighbors called the police, and she was transferred to the hospital, where she died.
Police later arrested the groom, who confessed to the crime. He said that after he failed to break her hymen, he thought she was not a virgin.
This is the second crime of its kind within the month. The first incident took place in Giza governorate when a peasant killed his bride for the same reason.
In a previous case, a man killed his wife, only to have the coroner's report show that she was still a virgin. He is now in jail.
Gynecologist Naglaa Ahmed told AlArabiya.net that she deals with many cases in which the husband cannot break the wife's hymen on the first night. This, she explained, is due to the physical and psychological stress both go through leading up to the wedding.
Ahmed added that the condition of the hymen could be another reason. In some cases, minor surgery is needed to break the hymen due to its thickness or inelasticity. In rare cases, pregnancy can occur while the hymen is still unbroken, she added.
Virginity is one of the most important conditions for marriage for most Egyptians and is seen as a matter of personal and family honor