Egyptian authorities arrested seven men accused of “debauchery” after video was posted online of a gay marriage ceremony.
Nine of the sixteen participants in the video were identified by police.
The couple had a wedding cake made with their picture on it for the occasion.
Egypt sentenced four men in April to up to eight years in prison under the anti-debauchery laws.
Yahoo reported:
Egypt has arrested seven men accused of debauchery for taking part in a “gay marriage” video that spread on social media networks, state news agency MENA reported.
Homosexuality is not included in a list of sexual offences explicitly outlawed by Egyptian law, but it can be punished under several different statutes on morality.
The seven were arrested on Saturday after appearing in a video showing two men celebrating a marriage ceremony and exchanging rings surrounded by friends.
“Nine of the 16 participants were identified in an investigation and seven were arrested,” MENA reported, without specifying whether the two men at the centre of the ceremony were among those detained.
The seven were remanded in custody for up to four days, accused of “incitement to debauchery” and “publishing indecent images,” MENA said.
Prosecutors have also ordered “medical tests” of the men — a longstanding practice in Egypt to allegedly identify homosexuals that has been denounced by human rights groups.
In May 2001, fifty-two men were arrested aboard a floating gay nightclub called the Queen Boat in Cairo. Fifty were charged with “habitual debauchery” and “obscene behavior.”
