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CBS reporter Lara Logan sexually assaulted in Egypt
Logan brutally attacked by mob of 200 on the night Hosni Mubarak stepped down
A CBS News reporter was sexually assaulted and beaten by a frenzied mob of more than 200 Egyptians in Cairo on the night that President Hosni Mubarak stepped down, the broadcaster has revealed.
Lara Logan, the chief foreign correspondent for CBS News, was covering celebrations in Tahrir Square for 60 Minutes when her team and security detail were surrounded by what CBS calls a "dangerous element amidst the celebration".
According to the network, there were more than 200 people in the mob "whipped into frenzy". Logan was separated from her crew and "suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and 20 Egyptian soldiers".
Logan left on the first flight back to the US the following morning and is recovering in hospital. CBS gave no further detail on Logan's injuries, but the New York Post quotes a source as saying it was not a rape.
The 39-year-old South African is an experienced war correspondent whose big break came when she travelled to Afghanistan in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Once there, she reported on the civil war between the US-backed Northern Alliance and the Taliban government for the ITV breakfast show GMTV. Logan has also reported from Iraq. ·
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@Douglas Smith
I am on of those "islamic women" otherwise known as Muslim women, and I can assure you that nowhere in the Quran says that we should wear that stupid contraption called burqa. There is however a minority of misguided individuals in the Muslim community who think that such garment is Islamic. It's not. It's a Saudi CULTURAL tradition, nothing more.
As for miss Logan, I find it hard to believe that she was literally raped in the middle of the street with thousands of people around. I believe that she was harassed physically as well as verbally, but penetrated ? Not a chance.
This is to be expected in all countries, especially in ones with strict moral codes supposed to be followed by men and women. The sad thing is it is not practiced. Look at the Arab and the Asian countries where interaction between sexes is restricted. Men and women alike grab the first opportunity to fornicate. I am sure Ms. Logan was dressed not for a ball, but for the biting cold in the desert. My sympathies, Ms. Logan.
I feel Andrew's comment was rather a criticism of " The First Post" choice of photograph, and agree with him that it was a poor, and I would add mischievous, choice. I'm certain Lara Logan, and any woman in her right mind, would have covered up in Tahrir Square, and no attack on her was in any way justifiable.
Here's a reply to Doverblue: If you would bother to read even a summary of the Islamic codes of conduct and the Koran, you would find that Islamic women are supposed to wear burkhas for exactly the reasons you suggest. Sending buxom, fetching blondes as your reporters for uprisings in Islamic countries is a slap in the face to the Islamics. Of course, Ms. Logan obviously likes the riskier assignments, although she may be a bit wiser now. And just so you - and others - don't get your knickers in a knot, I am not condoning what happened to this woman, but everyone involved should use some common sense in situations like this. Read Ayan Hirsi Ali's book Infidel if you want some insights into Islam.
@Andrew, no, she wasn't wearing "that outfit", she was "normally" clothed. Anyhow, what has this to do with that savage assault? Now, being a reporter in this kind of turmoil is like being a reporter on a frenzy battle field. Undoubtedly Ms. Logan and her team were aware of the danger, but she had the misfortune of getting surrounded by a gang of overheated mindless machos. Still, the positive (sic) news is that Egyptian women and military could save her, otherwise it's likely that she wouldn't have survived at all. Furthermore, you surely can't blame "all" Islamists for the assault, but some still want to do this. I do hope Ms. Logan recovers well from her physical and mental injuries and wish her all the best, privately and professionally.
Blame the sub-editor at The First Post who chose to illustrate the article with an inappropriate photo
Well it does appear time and again that females are second class citizens Muslim states, but i am sure it was all a mistake and they were all 'good boys' completely innocent, as usual. Lucky they didnt have acid and a sharp nose chopping knife to hand.
Reply to "Andrew". What has what she was wearing got to do with it? Are Egyptian men so feeble minded that a glimpse of cleavage sends them into a sexual rage? Is the reason why Islamist women need to wear a burkha because Islamist men are so weak they get sexually excited at the glimpse of an ankle? Ms. Logan is a professional reporter and would have been aware of the conditions so would have dressed appropriately I am sure. The entire fault lies with the men who assaulted her and not with Ms. Logan's choice of attire.
In the heartbreaking TV interview with Wael Ghonim after his release
( http://www.enduringamerica.com/home/2011/2/8/egypt-video-the-interview-w... ) even he commented on how proud he was that there were no sexual assaults .Judging by that comment some in-depth journalism on this subject needs to be done .
Why was this picture chosen to accompany this report? Are these the kind of clothes Ms Logan wears when out reporting? Is this the kind of outfit she was reporting from Egypt in?
It's a taste of things to come. Doubtless it will have been justified because she wasn't wearing a burka.