Citroën withdraws Egyptian ad with Amr Diab amid harassment criticism

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An automobile ad featuring Egyptian megastar Amr Diab has been accused of normalizing sexual harassment.

The ad, which was quickly removed by French automaker Citroën after its release, shows Diab driving his new C4 model when he nearly collided with a woman crossing the road in front of him.

As she drives through, Diab uses the car’s new camera feature to snap a photo of her, which then instantly appears on her phone. As part of the story, the photo is taken without the woman’s consent.

The French manufacturer apologized on Wednesday for offending viewers.

“Citroen cares about all the communities in the countries where we operate and we do not tolerate any form of harassment,” he said. “We deeply regret and understand the negative interpretations of this part of the film. We make the decision to remove this version of the commercial from all Citroën channels and we offer our sincere apologies to all communities offended by this film.

Although Citroën has removed the ad from all of its platforms, a longer version remains on Diab’s Twitter page. In this version released on December 3, the actor is seen taking the girl for a ride in her car.

Despite the apologies, many on social media have vehemently expressed how they think the ad is inappropriate, with some raising questions about sexual consent in the Arab world’s most populous nation.

Many said the publicity was particularly muffled, given the levels of sexual harassment in Egypt.

Others were taken aback by the fact that at no point between brainstorming for the ad and distributing it did anyone involved in its creation feel it was inappropriate.

“A man taking a picture of a woman without her consent. A whole team thought it was a good idea. Then they sent it back and they thought it was a good idea. Then @amrdiab, the biggest star in the Middle East and his team also thought it was a good idea. @ Citroën he explained? BBC Egyptian-British journalist Shaimaa Khalil wrote on Twitter.

Critics also noted that advertising, which encourages the taking of non-consensual photos of passers-by, is punishable by law in Egypt.

Despite criticism, some fans of the pop star were quick to defend him.

One Twitter user wrote: “I feel like this is a bit of a stretch. I mean, since when do people learn their life lessons from advertising? “

Diab has so far not responded to reviews and the announcement is still on his Twitter page at the time of writing.

Sexual misconduct has taken center stage in Egypt for the past two years, with dozens of women coming forward to report misconduct against them. This sparked what has since been called the Egyptian #MeToo movement.

Updated: December 30, 2021, 2:49 PM

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