Egypt Bill: Husbands Can Have Sex With Dead Wives

Husbands who aren't into lively sex would have the option of making love to their dead wives under a bill before the Egyptian parliament. The "Farewell Intercourse" bill would permit a husband to have sex with his wife up to six hours after her death. Theoretically, women could do the same, but practical realities would be an obstacle. The strange practice was discussed last year by controversial Moroccan cleric Zamzami Abdelbair, who declared that necrophilia is religiously acceptable. An Egyptian journalist blasted the idea as a "catastrophe," reports al-Arabiya. Could "the panel that will draft the Egyptian constitution possibly discuss such issues?" he asked. "Has the Islamic trend reached that far?"

It's one of a series of bills that could result in major setbacks for women in Egyptian society. Other laws under consideration include lowering the official age that girls can marry to 14, severely restricting a woman's right to divorce, and mandating female genital mutilation. But writing for the Christian Science Monitor, Dan Murphy calls the story "utter hooey," writing that "the chances of any such piece of legislation being considered by the Egyptian parliament for a vote is zero. And the chance of it ever passing is less than that." He adds, "The preacher in Morocco is like the preacher in Florida who spent so much time and energy publicizing the burning of Korans." (More sex stories.)