The torture caught the attention of authorities after a Facebook post showing a group of women eating them at a day party at an exclusive community club in Cairo went viral, state newspaper Al-Ahram said on Monday.
The baker was arrested and later released from custody after bailing EGP 5,000 ($ 318), the semi-official newspaper Akhbar el-Yom said.
Images of women eating penis cupcakes and vagina-shaped ice toppings at the Gezira Club circulated on Facebook this week, sparking debate among Egyptian social media users.
“After investigations, it was possible to determine the manufacturer of the sweets … the security services managed to detain her at her residence in Cairo, where she used her house to make sweets,” Al-Ahram said.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports is investigating.
“We will not be tolerant [with our decisions]”Mohamed Fawzy, the ministry’s spokesman, told a news program on Egyptian television.
But al-Ifta, Egypt’s largest Islamic religious body, also issued a statement saying sexual insinuations about cakes are religiously forbidden and legally criminalized, calling the incident a “flagrant abuse of values.” society ”.
The incident sparked outrage among Egyptian social media users and was the highlight of talk shows in the country.
Some on social media criticized the women involved and called for further action by the authorities, claiming that the incident was an attack “on family values”.
But others offered support and criticized Egypt’s slow response to the arrest of sexual harassers, rapists and aggressors, compared to measures taken against women.
Since taking power in 2014, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has passed a series of laws that strengthen government control over the Internet.
Part of the legislation has strengthened the government’s ability to target social media as part of ongoing efforts to counter dissent, including classifying social media accounts with more than 5,000 followers as public websites and therefore worthy of surveillance.
Last week, an Egyptian appellate court overturned prison sentences for two known TikTok influencers in a public morality case.
Haneen Hossam and Mawada Eladhm were charged with “violating family values and principles and establishing and administering online accounts for committing this crime.”
They were initially sentenced to two years in prison in July 2020 and fined EGP 300,000 (approximately $ 19,000) each.