Model Nira Ashraf's jilted lover stabbed her to death after she blocked him on social media
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Nira Ashraf had suffered a long campaign of harassment from her former boyfriend before he decided to lie in wait for her outside her university and repeatedly attacked her with a knife
A promising young student was stabbed to death in broad daylight outside her university allegedly by an ex-boyfriend after she blocked him on social media.
The victim, Nira Ashraf, was allegedly attacked by Mohamed Adel, a fellow student at Egypt's Mansoura University, on the morning of Monday, June 20.
She was rushed to hospital in a critical condition but is thought to have died whilst still in the ambulance.
There are conflicted accounts of what happened next, ranging from the attacker then fleeing and being restrained and the man attempting to kill himself with the same knife.
Following his arrest, Adel reportedly said he'd planned to kill Ashraf because of "sentimental differences," citing her refusal of his offer of marriage and the fact she'd blocked him on social media.
The prosecution detailed how the jilted lover had harassed his victim over a prolonged period before embarking on his plan.
Several people, including the victim’s father, reported that Ashraf had already filed a complaint and was afraid of being attacked by the accused.
According to a report on alfallahalyoum.news, the former couple had been apart for around 18 months by that point, during which time Adel claimed to have become depressed and "could not see his life without her."
He was then said to have allegedly taken a knife from his home in Mahalla al-Kubra and waited for her near the university gate before class.
As soon as she got off the bus he attacked her in front of a crowd of about 40 witnesses, including campus security guard Ibrahim Al-Ajroui who tackled him and handed over his weapon to the police.
Prosecution in the case said Adel "had known the student for a while and a romantic relationship had developed between them.
"But she started working as a model and built up a large number of followers on social media," before blocking him.
Adel currently remains detained by police, while the incident has sparked online uproar across the Arab Republic of Egypt.
Among those speaking out about the murder is Nehad Abo El Komsan, a human rights lawyer specializing in cases of gender-based violence.
Appearing in a video on Instagram, she said that, "as long as we do not take the complaints of young women seriously, and as long as we say that those fighting for women’s rights are ‘emboldening girls and causing trouble’, this will be the result."