Khaberni - The name of the Egyptian preacher Abdullah Rushdi topped social media sites after the spread of a birth certificate of his daughter without him announcing his marriage.
Egyptian blogger Amina Hegazi broke her silence in her first media appearance, during her meeting with media personality Yasmin El-Khatib on the program "Masaa al-Yasmin" on Al-Shams channel, revealing details of her short marriage to preacher Abdullah Rushdi, which she described as "a painful experience that left deep psychological scars," and she considered it "an attempt to erode her faith and dignity".
Amina said: "After my marriage to Abdullah Rushdi, I went through a phase of psychological turmoil. I am currently in recovery, and I need to stand on my feet before I think about any new steps. Any failed experience leaves an impact, and I do not want to be unfair to myself, nor to my daughter".
Amina indicated that the acquaintance began by following his religious content, then Rushdi formally proposed to her in May, after asking for her father's number to speak with him. She described the wedding ceremony as "very formal," and it was officiated in salons, and "it was written in the certificate that he was unmarried," even though she knew beforehand that he had been previously married.
She added: "The relationship was legitimate, and known to both families. I wanted a quiet life, away from social media. But I started receiving messages of abuse and attacks from followers, so I filed an official report about the incident — he asked me to back down from it".
She emphasized that she wanted to end the relationship "politely and respectfully," especially since there was a young daughter involved, and she did not want to damage his image in front of people. But she said that "what hurt me the most was his silence" when the news spread, and when she offered to reach a friendly reconciliation, he refused. "He was supposed to defend me, but he chose to be silent. My father was sympathetic to him because he saw in him a religious man who deserved trust. But he completely changed his opinion when he learned that he refused reconciliation, and refused to recognize my daughter".
Amina confirmed that the relationship was not only a disappointment in marriage but was also "an attempt to erode her faith": "I saw him as a religious role model, and thought he would help me stay steadfast. But in reality, he made me doubt myself and my religion. He could have driven me out of my faith".
She mentioned that her father, who had agreed to the marriage based on his trust in Rushdi as a religious man, remained sympathetic to him for a while, until he found out that Rushdi refused to acknowledge her daughter, and then "he completely changed his opinion".
Amina concluded her talk with a direct appeal: "I ask for nothing but that he recognizes my daughter. I'm not asking for money, nor for help, nor for media attention. I only ask that he acknowledges her as his daughter. That is her right, and it is my right".
