Nawal el-Saadawi, the prominent Egyptian feminist, doctor and novelist known for writings on gender and religious extremism, died Sunday at the age of 89 following what her family said was a long illness.
Saadawi wrote about taboo social issues in the deeply conservative country, including the Muslim veil, polygamy and inheritance rights for women. She also fiercely campaigned for an end to the practice of female genital mutilation in Egypt, which she experienced at the age of 6.
