Family asked hermaphrodite to live as a woman

At 33, Yousuf Al Refal has endured the pain of being born a hermaphrodite — and he's estranged from his family as a result

    By Noorhan Barakat, Staff Reporter
    Published: 21:20 September 20, 2012

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/general/family-asked-hermaphrodite-to-live-as-a-woman-1.1079168

Dubai: A man, who lived as a woman until he was 18 years old, told Gulf News he was unaware of his condition as a hermaphrodite.

Yousuf — who grew up as Sara — has suffered a breakdown after his family insisted he stay female.

Troubled Yousuf, 33, who now wants to live as a man and has officially changed his status to male, tells a sad story of a feud that has ripped his family apart.

He claims his relatives want him to live life as a woman to save his brother from military service in their native Egypt.

Rules there mean a lone male in a family is exempt from duty — but this would mean Yousuf remains as Sara.

He told Gulf News: "I just want to live like a normal human being, just like everybody else.

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