Authorities in Cairo have banned a 92-year-old Gulf Arab man from marrying a 17-year-old Egyptian girl, under laws brought in to counter the increasing number of wealthy Gulf men travelling to the impoverished Egyptian countryside to find much younger, temporary brides.

The ministry of justice invoked a law that says the age gap between spouses should not exceed 25 years, the Egyptian Al-Akhbar newspaper reported. In an indication of how prevalent such marriages are becoming, Al-Akhbar reported that 173 couples with more than 25 years between them wed last year, via a loophole in the law that allows a foreign man to take a much younger bride in exchange for depositing about $80,000 (£41,000) in the Egyptian national bank.

Sociologists say the rising number of cases of this so called "sexual tourism" is driven by the unprecedented wealth flowing into the Gulf from record breaking oil prices, set against the grinding poverty faced by families in countries like Syria and Egypt. "First it's a question of rich versus poor. These rich men use their money to buy girls from very poor families," said Huda Riza, a sociology professor at the Lebanese University. "There is also the cultural tradition in the Arab world among old men who believe having a young girl in their life can bring back their youth."

As the summer sun sends temperatures soaring in Gulf countries, thousands of wealthy families escape the heat for an extended holiday by making the annual trek north to Mediterranean countries such as Lebanon, Syria and Egypt. But alongside the tourists, come an increasing number of Gulf men.

A decade ago, Syria was a top spot for such activities. But while young Damascene women still complain of being goggled at by Gulf men and the late-night bars of some hotels still feature painted women in mini skirts taking room numbers from lounging white-robed clients, the increasing prosperity in the country is reducing such sex tourism.

In Egypt, poverty is rife. Girls from rural Egyptian families might be sold to a wealthy Gulf man for between $500 and $1,500. Having returned to the Gulf state with her husband, most Egyptian girls find they are treated as servants in the family home and rejected by the man's existing wife or wives.

After a few months of such "marriage" the girl can be divorced and sent home, often with a settlement of up to $10,000, a sum it would take the average Egyptian 10 years or more to earn.

Egypt stops man, 92, from marrying girl | World news | The Guardian