In Egypt, patients are often jailed on trumped up charges and ostracized by society. Estimates of the number of people living with HIV in Egypt vary. Patients who require surgical intervention are often unable to access basic health care at hospitals because of the associated stigma, UNAIDS officials said. But in Egypt, the virus is widely associated with homosexuality, which is seen by many Egyptians as a lifestyle choice. In a recent conference on AIDS, Islamic scholar and cleric Ali al-Jifri spoke about the stigma and discrimination surrounding HIV and AIDS patients.

Source: National Post December 04, 2017 06:20 UTC