In a first of its kind in the history of the Egyptian parliament, the National Security Council announced May 3 that the "issue of spinsters” constitutes a national security issue that should be confronted. This has left analysts divided, with some arguing that it is a quintessentially social and economic — i.e., not security-related — issue, while others believe it poses a dangerous threat to the national security of the country.

Egypt suffers from a pressing social crisis known as "spinsterism." When a woman passes the age of 30 without getting married, it is viewed negatively by society. In some regions, such as rural villages and in Upper Egypt, the threshold age to qualify as a spinster may be even younger. Gloom reigns behind closed doors in many Egyptian homes whose families have been struck by grief and sadness because of society’s view of the spinster. She is often caught between the pity of her friends and malicious gossip of her enemies. And the older the woman gets, the more anxious her family grows and the more frantic their search for the sought-after husband. With the mediation of friends and family, they offer the girl as a candidate for marriage to a local young man in what is commonly known as a "salon marriage." The more unsuccessful this attempt to seal a marriage is, the worse the girl’s psychological state may be.

As the problem has escalated over time, the number of spinsters in Egypt now stands at more than 8 million, an estimated 40% of women of a marriageable age. Egyptian media outlets have begun to report on the issue, and the local film industry has recently produced a film on the subject, titled “Two daughters from Egypt.” With no visible change in Egyptian society, the crisis has now reached the parliament and a committee no one imagined would ever tackle the issue: the National Security Council.

Col. Ashraf Gamal, a member of the National Security Council, told Al-Monitor in this regard, “There is a phenomenon that has become an issue of national security, insofar as it constitutes a threat to the institution and stability of the Egyptian family, owing to the negative psychological effects it has on the family. Among its other negative ramifications for national security are the proliferation of crimes of rape and sexual harassment, which stem from sexual frustration or [people] entering into illicit [sexual] relations. As a result of this, another phenomenon — no less dangerous — has arisen: Egypt’s 'street children.' [And another consequence has been] the spread of theft in order to raise the necessary dowry payments required for marriage.”