Actress gets four-hour grilling over skimpy dress

Prosecutors in Egypt questioned actress Rania Youssef for nearly four hours on charges of public obscenity in connection with a revealing dress she wore during a film festival gala in Cairo.

The prosecutors yesterday ordered Youssef to be released pending the completion of the investigation, an indication that she might be summoned again, according to her lawyer, Shaaban Said.

Despite yesterday’s grilling and release, the actress, 45, still faces trial on January 12 at a Cairo criminal court. If convicted, she could face up to five years in jail.

The controversy began last Thursday when Youssef showed up on the red carpet of the Cairo International Film Festival’s closing ceremony wearing a long black dress with a see-through skirt revealing her legs. Images of her posing for photographers were shared on social media networks, triggering a flood of comment and opinion.

The dress and news of her trial dominated discussions on social media over the past week, made front-page news in several newspapers and inspired opinion pieces. The controversy over her dress also sparked debate on whether individuals should be taken to task on what they wear and if those outraged by the dress should direct their anger at some of society’s graver injustices.

Many on social media used religion to denounce Youssef, while others faulted the judicial system for bowing to conservatives on an inconsequential issue at a time when the country is grappling with much more pressing questions, such as the economy or fighting terrorism.

Youssef said at the weekend that she did not mean to offend anyone and urged her critics to believe her good intentions.

“I want to repeat my commitment to the values and ethics we have been raised by in Egyptian society,” she said, but did not offer an outright apology.

In choosing that dress, she wrote, she had heeded advice from fashion designers who may have been influenced by the preferences and standards seen at international film festivals.