Egyptian Marwa Al-Sleidar falsely accused the Suez Canal

The first female captain of a ship in Egypt said she was wrongly blamed The Suez Canal disaster – that occurred while on a different ship hundreds of miles away.

Marwa Al-Sulaydar, 29, was at sea as the first companion of the Fourth Aida Command in Alexandria when the huge container ship Evergreen was accidentally hung in the waterway, The BBC reported.

But online rumors and fake news headlines spread that she was behind the maritime disaster, which disrupted the main shipping route for nearly a week before Ever Geffen was released.

“I was shocked. I felt that I might be targeted, maybe because I am a successful woman in this field or because I am Egyptian, but I am not sure.”

The captain of Evergiven has not been revealed, but Egyptian officials have said that a human error may have caused the ship to misdemeanor last month.

Elselehdar – who does not work for the shipping company – said the rumors about her involvement were apparently prompted by a screen shot of a fake Arab News headline.

“This fake article is in English, so it spread to other countries,” Al-Sulayhdar told the BBC.

“I tried very hard to deny what was in the article because it was affecting my reputation and all the efforts I made to be where I am now.”

The false story prompted trolls to pursue her, too.

“The comments on the article were very negative and harsh, but there were a lot of other supportive comments from regular people and the people I work with,” she said.

“My message to women who want to be in the maritime domain is to fight for what you love and not let any negativity affect you,” she said.