Egyptian actress Rania Youssef poses on the red carpet at the closing ceremony of the 40th edition of the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) at the Cairo Opera House in the Egyptian capital on November 29, 2018. / AFP / Suhail SALEH
CAIRO: An Egyptian actress facing trial on public obscenity charges for wearing a dress revealing the entirety of her legs says she did not mean to offend anyone.
In a Facebook statement late Saturday, Rania Youssef says she may have misjudged the reaction to the dress and been influenced by fashion experts.
Youssef, due in court Jan. 12, wore the dress Thursday for the closing ceremony of a Cairo film festival. Images of her were widely shared on social media, prompting a group of lawyers to file a complaint that was taken up by the chief prosecutor.
It's the latest instance of ostensibly secular authorities siding with religious conservatives in Muslim-majority Egypt, where the military overthrew an elected Islamist president in 2013.
