CAIRO: 42 Egyptian women were honored by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as part of nationwide celebrations on Wednesday marking Mother’s Day. Speaking on the occasion, Sisi praised “the greatness of Egyptian women,” in a ceremony held at a Cairo hotel. Public figures, ministers, and Egypt’s first lady attended the event. Maya Morsi, Chairwoman of the National Council for Women (NCW), said Egyptian women are Egypt’s third line of defense, after the army and the police, according to Al-Masry el-Youm newspaper. Morsi said Egypt has a clear policy and approach to empowering women across all fields, referring to legislation and unprecedented laws recently issued to protect the rights of Egyptian women. Meanwhile, Egyptian female celebrities filled social media with heartwarming messages as they expressed their gratitude towards mothers and motherhood. Egyptian actress Donia Samir Ghanem sent her wishes to her mother Dalal Abdel Aziz in the form of a picture she has posted on her official Twitter account. Egyptian singer Angham chose to celebrate the occasion her own way, by sharing a video of her newly released song that celebrate mother"s love. “Mother, my backbone, my support, in your shadow I live .. no matter what I do to you is never enough.” said the song"s lyrics. Meanwhile, singer Carmen Soliman, who was just blessed with a baby, posted on Instagram her latest song on how motherhood has changed her life, while asking fans to share the song with their beloved mothers. The Arab world marks Mother’s day on March 21 of every year.