Egyptian woman divorces husband for 'wearing wrong aftershave'

The 29-year old woman applied at a Cairo court to end her five-year marriage, local media reported.

Women in Egypt can apply to get divorced through a religious procedure called Khula, which enables women to divorce a husband by returning the dowry they received prior to marriage.

Her husband, she says, wears a strong cologne that causes her severe pain in her nose, as she suffers from acute sinusitis.

After continuously warning and pleading with him to stop using that perfume at home, she turned to her father for support.

However, the uncompromising husband refused to budge.

Her frequent and prolonged demands usually ended up in violent brawls between the couple, during which the husband hit her, leaving marks on her face and body.

After countless attempts to get her husband to compromise, she decided to leave him and return to her parent's home.

Domestics and gender-based violence is rife in Egypt and countries in the region.

However, decades of activism by local women's rights groups have started to result in some policy reforms, albeit at a slow pace of change.