Hesham Selim, 62, a well-known Egyptian actor has spoken on television about having a 26-year-old transgender son.
He made the revelation on a Sunday night television talk show in which he spoke of the difficulty his son had faced.
“One day … she came and told me, ‘I’m living in a body that’s not mine’,” Selim said on the show, using the feminine pronoun before switching to “he”.
Selim said Egyptian society made it difficult for those who struggled with their gender identity.
Reactions on social media were mixed. Some Egyptians praised Selim for supporting his son, but others said the actions of both went against their religion.
Human rights groups said there was a lack of awareness of the issue in Egypt, where many people conflated gender identity.
Egypt stated this year in a United Nations review of its human rights record that it does not discriminate against any citizen, and that it guarantees freedom of expression.
