Under halakha (Jewish law) only men have the power to grant a get. Women who cannot persuade their husbands to free them from marriage become known as "agunahs" or chained wives. Although they are legally divorced under British law, chained wives (particularly those within Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities) often find themselves ostracised if they dare to remarry or speak out.

An abandoned Cairo synagogue currently serves as government offices.

Hawas: If you don't restore your history, you have no future.

The synagogues, mainly destroyed, have now either been replaced by social housing or, at best, are used as mosques or warehouses throughout the country.