The Court of Cassation upholds the referral of Ashraf Hakimi to trial on rape charges, and the Egyptian junior national team is crowned African handball champion for the second time in a row.

On Wednesday, the Court of Cassation upheld the decision to refer Moroccan international star Achraf Hakimi to trial on charges of rape, as the right-back of the French football team Paris Saint-Germain faces an accusation of rape by a young woman since February 2023, according to a news report.

Hakimi is already scheduled to appear before the court, as he will have to defend himself in court, after his appeal was rejected, as the Court of Cassation confirmed to the French newspaper “Le Monde”: “It has been decided not to accept the appeal in this case.”

In mid-June, the Court of Appeal in Versailles upheld the decision to refer Hakimi to trial on charges of raping a young woman, a charge that the player denied from the beginning of the proceedings.

Hakimi filed an appeal before the Court of Cassation shortly after that ruling, while the date of the expected trial has not yet been determined, but it may begin next year, according to the official website of Monte Carlo Radio.

Rachel-Fleur Pardo, the young woman’s lawyer, stated in a press statement issued on Tuesday: “After a legal battle that lasted 3 and a half years, and after my client was subjected to defamation and deliberate abuse by Achraf Hakimi’s defense team, she is determined to obtain justice, and will continue the struggle until the end.”

She added: “She hopes with all her heart that this case will contribute to helping other women, and will further crack the bastion of denial and impunity surrounding sexual violence, even in the world of men’s football.”

For his part, Bertrand Perrier, the lawyer representing the civil party before the Court of Cassation, stated in the same press release: “This decision reflects the soundness and sobriety of the reasoning on which the Court of Appeal relied.”

Following this latest attempt to dismiss the case, and with the Court of Cassation only considering purely procedural and legal issues, Hakimi must now defend his version of events before the judiciary, in response to the accusations leveled against him by the young woman in February 2023.

Egypt's dominance in African handball is no longer just a passing superiority or a temporary achievement, but rather has turned into a reality imposed by the numbers and championships achieved at various age levels. Old, young and emerging.

The Egyptian junior national team succeeded in confirming the position of the “Pharaohs” on the throne of the African continent, after it won the African Nations Championship title held in Côte d’Ivoire on Tuesday evening, after defeating its Tunisian counterpart with a score of 28-25 in the final match.

The Egyptian junior handball team gave a strong performance during the final match, and succeeded in finishing the first half ahead of its rival with a score of 13-10, before maintaining its superiority during the second half and deciding the match in its favor by a difference of three goals, declaring its crowning champion of the African continent, for the second time in a row.

The Young Pharaohs won the continental title after a strong campaign during the tournament, which they opened with a victory over Congo 51-21, before defeating Cameroon with a score of 35-17 in the group stage, and in the quarter-finals, they achieved victory over Nigeria with a score of 55-21, before winning in the semi-finals over Morocco with a score of 44-12.

The Egyptian junior men's national team previously won the silver medal at the World Handball World Cup last November, and the latest achievement comes only about 10 days after the Egyptian men's under-20 handball team won the African Championship title, for the fourth time in a row, and a few weeks after the men's under-18 women's national team succeeded in their historic qualification to the semi-finals of the World Championship in Romania. A few days ago, the Egyptian men's handball team won the gold medal in the Taranto 2026 Mediterranean Games, in successive achievements that reflect the absolute Egyptian superiority in the game.

Sports critic, Hebat Allah Muhammad, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the first thing that draws attention about the Egyptian youth team’s journey in the tournament is the distinguished level it presented. Most of the matches ended with a large difference in goals. As for the final match against Tunisia, although it was the most competitive, the Egyptian team succeeded in deciding it with a score of 28-25 thanks to its technical superiority and ability to manage the match until the end, which confirms that Egypt continues to impose its control over African handball in the junior category.

She points out that the imposition of Egypt’s “Hand” dominance at the junior, men’s, or women’s level reflects the strength of the system in general, and this is due to the organized work carried out by the Handball Federation through continuous preparation programs, the large number of matches and camps, in addition to giving rising players opportunities to interact with the highest levels locally and internationally, which ensures the continuation of Egyptian superiority on the continent, and raises the ceiling of ambitions and expectations regarding the future of Egyptian handball.

Sports critic, Ahmed Gomaa Al-Taweel, believes that “this latest coronation sends a message to competitors in Africa confirming that the Egyptian handball team has swept the continent, and that the Egyptian national team has a strong base and all the capabilities that qualify it to compete with the major players of the game, such as Denmark, France and Sweden. It is also a new message that proves that the handball system is the most successful in Egyptian sports, thanks to the competencies of workers in the handball sector, the early professionalism of the Egyptian players, and the interaction with the giants of the game, which is what “Making the African competition almost decisive for Egypt.”

Al-Taweel explains that in order for the youth team to continue its handball achievements, its players must become professional in European clubs, which increases the awareness and strength of the Egyptian player, as external contact generates strength, solidity and more experience, pointing to multiple examples shining in Europe at the present time, such as Yehia Khaled in Paris Saint-Germain, Mohamed Ali, the Portuguese goalkeeper of Sporting Lisbon, Yahya Al-Daraa in Veszprem of Hungary, and Saif Al-Daraa in Barcelona, ​​Spain.

The President of the Egyptian Handball Federation, Khaled Fathi, confirmed that Egyptian handball is moving in the right direction, and the successive achievements of the national teams at various ages and categories confirm the strength of the base that Egypt possesses, stressing the ability of the handball system to create new generations that continue to raise the Egyptian flag on African and international podiums.