CAIRO — Eid Albanna, an Egyptian from South Sinai, posted a photo of the engagement ceremony of his daughter Salma, 5, to her cousin Youssef, 8, on Facebook July 21. He did not expect the wave of criticism that ensued, nor was he prepared for the controversy over underage marriage the photo sparked in Egypt.
On July 23, Albanna expressed his opinion to El Watan newspaper about the criticism leveled against him because of the photo, which, according to him, is tradition in Egypt. Salma’s brother, Ahmed Albanna, told Youm7, “The issue is not worth all the hype. The parents have said that Youssef is Salma’s, and such a thing happens a lot in Egyptian families.”