Journalist Aysha Al Dawri, who works for the news channel Al Hurrah that airs from the United States, stated that she has filed a lawsuit against internationally well-known actor Omar Al Shareef for slapping her in public during the Doha International Film Festival.
Aysha said she was shocked when Omar slapped her for merely requesting to take a photograph with him. She added she was on the verge of crying when the actor slapped her, but controlled her emotions and smiled instead to refrain from shedding tears over the embarrassment.
During the incident, Aysha said that she apologized to Omar for insisting on taking a picture but he kept scolding her and then shocked those present even more when he slapped her. She added that at that moment everyone present was in shock and silence clouded the location. Afterwards, Omar himself apologized to Aysha and took a photo with her.
Aysha stated that the organizers of the festival had placed great pressure on securing Omar and trying to calm down the situation to avoid too much commotion, despite the fact that she was invited to cover the event as a journalist. She added that the organizers had asked her to say that the incident was merely a joke and the video that was released made it seem as if she was being slapped to cover up for Omar.
