English school girl raped in Egypt

An interview with Charlotte.
Charlotte tells us about the terrible experience she had as a schoolgirl in Egypt, when she was brutally raped by two Arabs.




This is the first time; I have ever talked about what happened.

Where did it happen?
I was at a private girl’s boarding school in England. The summer holidays were due to begin, my parents worked in Egypt at the British Consulate and I was going out to stay with them for my school holidays and celebrate my thirteenth birthday.
I was ever so excited; I had never been abroad before.

Did it happen in Egypt?
Yes, about two weeks after I arrived, my mother had warned me about the Arabs. I never went out on my own. I wasn’t stupid; in fact I was a very sensible girl for my age.
May be that’s the only reason I am still alive today, the penalty for rape in Egypt is the death sentence, that’s why most of the rape victims are killed, so they cant identify there rapist.

How old were you then?
I was just 13. I had only just had my birthday three days before it happened.
But I looked older then 13, I was tall for my age. My dad was very tall and my mother was Swedish and blond. I knew I was quite a pretty girl, being tall and slim with long blond hair.

What clothes were you wearing when it happened?
We had been invited to some sort of embassy dinner and dance for families and friends who worked at the consulate. Mum had brought me a white cotton dress it was very beautiful, it came just below my knees and had a hand embroidered hem, short sleeves and buttons down the front to the waist. I even had matching short white ankle socks
Mum had done my hair; she had left it long with just a few curls in it to make it look fuller. I was so proud; I think I must have been the prettiest girl at the ball.
Children and all the under-sixteen year olds had to leave the ball before 9 o’clock.
We had a magic show, then dad said I had to go home, he organised a driver and I was driven back to our apartment block, the driver even accompanied me into the reception area and he called the lift.

Did you at any time you feel in danger or that somebody was following you?
No, the apartment block was very safe; we even had security in and outside. Our apartment was on the 8th floor. They were renovating all the apartments on the 4th floor; the Arab workers always used the staff and furniture lift. Long pause.

Take your time, I know it must be very difficult for you, just tell us what happened.
In the lift I pressed the button for my floor, the door closed and the lift went up. The bell rang and the lift stopped at the 4th floor. The doors opened. Two Arab workers were standing there; they were both wearing the typical dirty white caftans that Arab workers wore.
It all happened very quickly, they both came in the lift, one snatched my hand the other one grabbed my hair and together they pulled me out of the lift.
I screamed and the one pulling me by my hair put his hand over my mouth to keep me quite. They pulled me along the corridor and into one of the apartments that was being renovated. There were cement sacks and boxes of tiles in the entrance; they pulled me into one of the rooms, it was empty, apart from a dirty old mattress on the floor.

Can you describe your assailants?
This is a sketch of what the older Arab man looked like. Removed
I’m quite good at drawing and I drew this from memory. Even though I drew this three years later, as long as I live I will never be able to forget what that horrible dirty old man looked like and what he did to me.
Both Arabs were about the same height, bigger then I was, but not as tall as my dad. They were both very unclean and the old man stank, they had very dirty white caftans on, their heads were partly covered with the head wear that the workers always wore on the building sites. One was about twenty five or thirty but I can’t be sure, and the other one was much older I think he must have been more than sixty. His face was all wrinkled and he was a black Arab, probably from North Africa. He had a grey beard and moustache, and his teeth, most of them were missing, and what few he still had were disgusting, they were all black and dark yellow decayed stumps.
They pulled me over to the mattress, the younger one that was holding me by my hair with his hand over my mouth pulled me down by my hair, forcing me down onto the mattress. The older one grabbed my ankles and pulled my legs out, so I was laying flat on my back.




Did they speak any English?
Yes the younger one, his English was quite good, and I think he could understand me. The older black one only spoke Arabic.

Tell me what happened next.
He took his hand away from covering my mouth, and pulled my arms up behind my head. I yelled at them to let me go. I told them my dad worked at the British Embassy he’s a very important man and they would get into big trouble if they didn’t let me go.
I think I was very composed for my age, considering what was happening. I struggled to try and get away, but they were both a lot stronger then I was. After he had pulled both my arms up behind my head he put his knees over them so that he was kneeling on them to hold them there. I tried to kick but the other one just grabbed my ankles and held my legs down. Then he knelt on my feet and legs, he was very heavy and I couldn’t pull my feet out from underneath him.
Maybe they hadn’t understood me. So I tried to tell them in simple English, I said “My father policeman, he coming to look for me, you in big trouble, let me go now” I don’t know if they understood me or not.
They were talking to each other, but the older one was getting very loud. It sounded like they were arguing; I couldn’t understand them as it was Arabic. I hoped they were talking about letting me go. But when I think about it now, they were probably only arguing over who was going to be first, anyway the older one must have won the argument, he raped me first, although the first time he tried, I really resisted and fought like mad to try and stop him. I was a virgin and he couldn’t get his penis into me.
But then the old Arab gave the younger one a knife. He told me in English that he’d cut my throat if I resisted.
He held the knife against my throat while the horrible dirty smelly old Arab raped me. It was awful and very painful, he knew I was a virgin, he really hurt me.

Did you think you were going to be raped when they pulled you out of the lift?
No, I was only just thirteen, and very naïve, I hadn’t even had my first period yet.
My mother was very religious; she had never really talked to me about sex. But I wasn’t stupid, I knew were babies came from and how they were made.
At school I had three very good girl friends; we all came from good families. We’d made a pact, and solemnly swore on the Bible, that we would all stay virgins until we were 18 and only then if it was Mr. Right. I suppose that was typical what young girls do. No, I didn’t think I was going to be raped. Men didn’t rape 13 year old girls. I was totally innocent and had never even been kissed – I was very scared, but I thought they were only going to frighten me, then let me go.




What happened then?
They held me down on the mattress.
The older one lifted my dress up so he could see my legs. I screamed and the other one put his hand over my mouth again, he told me to be quiet. He kept his hand over my mouth, while the dirty smelly old Arab put his hands up under my dress all the way up to the top of my legs. He got hold of my panties. I couldn’t believe what he was doing.
I tried to scream as he started pulling my panties down and struggled madly but I couldn’t stop him. The one with his hand over my mouth holding me down, he kept saying “Be quiet girl, be quiet” I started crying then as he pulled my panties down, I was really frightened. He pulled them all the way down my legs till they were down round my ankles. Then he put his hand up under my dress again and started feeling my legs. Oh god I didn’t want to be touched by this horrible old Arab. He slowly started moving his hand further up my leg.
It was awful; I had never ever been touched by a man before, I was a very respectable shy, innocent 13 year old girl.
I clamped my legs together tightly to try and stop him, but he forced his hand in between the top of my legs.
Crying I shook my head madly I didn’t want him to touch me there. The horrible old Arab was grinning at me, showing his disgusting teeth, he was such a revolting dirty old man. I could feel his fingers in between the top of my legs; slowly he started pushing the tip of one of his fingers into my vagina. It was horrible, I hated him touching me. I felt so ashamed. He pushed the end of his finger inside my vagina; he kept pushing his finger further in me till it started to hurt. He spoke to the other one still holding his hand over my mouth. It seemed like he was very excited he said “Masutu” he said it a few times and then pulled his finger out of me.


Did you know what he was talking about?
Yes my mother had mentioned it, when she had told me about the Arabs way of life and how important it was that I didn’t go out alone.