Dubai: An Egyptian actress and her sister have denied charges of assaulting and insulting an American tourist and his family, Dubai Courts heard on Tuesday.
The film actress named Zeina, 41, and her sister, 38, thought they were being video recorded by the tourist’s daughter before attacking the man and his wife and insulting them.
The American tourist, 48, and his wife, 44, were charged with physically assaulting the actress and her sister and insulting them. He denied the charges while his wife was not present in court.
On June 29 last year, Dubai Police were alerted to the brawl at Dubai Atlantis’s Gold Lounge.
The Egyptian actress and her sister told officers that a group of people had been taking pictures and video of them.
The tourist said that he heard the actress screaming at his daughter in Arabic telling her she was ‘an animal’. He approached her and told her his daughter didn’t speak Arabic.
“She shifted to English and cursed all of us using bad language,” the tourist said.
Emirati lawyer Awatif Mohammad from Al Rowaad Advocates representing the tourist and his wife told the court that the actress and her sister had been previously involved in similar incidents.
“The actress was sentenced to a month in prison by an Egyptian court for assault a few years ago, and in another case, both were charged with assaulting journalists,” said Awatif.
She said that a witness whose testimony was taken under oath told prosecution that the sisters attacked her client’s daughter.
The Emirati lawyer requested charges against her client and his wife be dismissed because there was no proof of assault in the case file.
“A legal translation of the insults indicate that they threatened to subject my client and his wife to an indecent act, which is punishable by a minimum of six months in prison followed by deportation,” said Awatif.
She also said that prosecutors completely overlooked the medical report that proves the daughter suffered scratches on her left arm and swelling of the right temple after she was attacked by the celebrity and her sister.
The Egyptian actress denied the allegation in court saying she never attacked anyone.
“I swear by God that these people are not telling the truth,” she said. “I am a famous actress and I wouldn’t and haven’t attacked anyone.”
Her defence lawyer, Mahmoud Azab requested the court to press assault charges against the 12-year-old girl, and sexual assault against the husband for grabbing the actress’s sister by her left breast.
He then presented a medical report stating that his clients suffered bruises in several parts of their bodies as a result of the attack.
In her statement to the media, the Egyptian actress said that her privacy had been breached by the teen and her family when they recorded her, but a criminal laboratory report said that no images or clips of the actress were found on the teen’s mobile phone.
A verdict is expected on January 24.
