Benha court hears appeal of defendants in "dance suit" assault case

Benha Criminal Court's first appellate circuit convened on Tuesday to hear the appeal of six defendants convicted in the Mit Asim case.

• The appellate court session on November 3 heard the appeal of defendants who forced a young man to wear women's clothing, filmed him, and posted the footage online in the village of Mit Asim in Qalyubia.
• The previous session was adjourned to today until all defendants could attend, and the victim's lawyer requested a copy of his client's medical report from Benha's mental health hospital.
• A defendant said from the dock that videos and photos exist that were not presented during the investigation, stating "we didn't do anything wrong, we were defending our honor."
• First-instance rulings sentenced defendants one and two to three years' hard labor, defendant four to five years, and defendants five and six to three months, on charges including kidnapping, assault, and privacy violations.