Egypt’s Immigration Minister Nabila Makram commented on the circulated video which showed her saying the critics of the country should be “chopped,” saying her words had been taken out of context and she did not intend to promote violence.
Makram was addressing a crowd of Egyptian expatriates in Canada. The recording of the event was posted to social media showed Makram gesturing at her neck with her hand to mime the slitting of a throat as she tells the crowd in Arabic that anyone who speaks badly about Egypt should be “chopped.”
In comments posted on the ministry’s Facebook page before she returned home on Friday, Makram wrote that she had “used a colloquial Egyptian-Arabic phrase and made a gesture that has since been taken out of context and its intentions misunderstood.”
“I can understand how the phrase and gesture I made may be construed as offensive or insensitive. I would like to stress that my intention was not to promote violence toward any Egyptian or foreigner,” she added
