For the fourth year in a row, Egypt did not improve its ranking on the list of countries that are under observation for human trafficking, according to the Ninth Annual Report of the US State Department on human trafficking. The report put Egypt in the second category related to countries that did not fully comply with the minimum requirements of the law on the protection of victims of trafficking. But it said Egypt is making significant efforts, as opposed to the countries of the third category, which is the worst. The report, which was announced by the US State Department the day before yesterday, said that Egypt is still a source, a mediator and a destination for the trafficking of women and children for forced labor and sexual exploitation. It has also reiterated that the street children in Egypt, estimated at one million children of both sexes, are exploited in forced prostitution and begging. The report added that the children are used for domestic work and work in agriculture in ways similar to slavery, such as restricting their movement, not paying wages and threatening them with physical or sexual abuse. The report once again said that the wealthy men of the Gulf come to Egypt for temporary marriages, in some cases to girls under the age of 18. It considered such marriages as sexual exploitation that is facilitated by the parents of these girls and by the marriage brokers. It also said that child sex tourism has boomed in Cairo, Alexandria and Luxor. According to the report, Egypt is a hub for trafficking women from Uzbekistan, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia and other countries in Eastern Europe to Israel through the Sinai for sexual exploitation. The report said that the Egyptian government does not comply with the minimum criteria for reducing human trafficking, yet it is making an effort in this regard.
