In an unfortunate incident, Egypt’s first female ship captain Marwa Elselehdar was dragged into a fake news campaign that blamed her for the Suez Canal blockade, reported BBC news.
However, as per sources, the said claims were found to be fake when it was revealed that Elselehdar was on duty hundreds of miles away in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria when news of the container ship Ever Given wedged across the Suez Canal was making headlines.
“I was shocked. I felt that I might be targeted maybe because I’m a successful female in this field or because I’m Egyptian, but I’m not sure,” the 29-year-old captain was quoted in the BBC report.
In addition, screenshots of the fake news headline and a doctored image of the captain were also circulated all over social media on March 22 which further made people believe in the rumors of her involvement in the canal incident.
In a report by BBC, Elselehdar confided that people still don’t accept the idea of women working in the sea away from their families, which probably could have let people believe in the fake news. She further went on to say that it is not necessary to seek everyone’s approval if you do what you love. The captain is one of the 2 percent of women seafarers in the world.
The skyscraper-sized container ship Ever Given got stuck in the Suez canal last month leading to huge traffic congestion in one of the world’s most strategic shipping routes which in turn adversely affected trade across the world.
More than 300 ships were waiting to pass as the container ship remained stuck for six days in the Suez Canal. The ship was refloated on March 29. Global commerce resumed its course by April 3.
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