Mini-Skirt Wearing Woman Arrested in Saudi Arabia

A young woman who posted a video of herself wearing a short skirt and a short-sleeved t-shirt in Saudi Arabia was arrested on Tuesday. According to the Associated Press, the woman, whose name has not been disclosed, was detained by police in Riyadh on charges of 'wearing inappropriate clothing' that violates the country's laws regarding women's hijab. The Saudi state news agency reported that the police have referred her case to the prosecutor's office. The video, which was first posted a few days ago on Snapchat, shows the young woman walking in the old part of a village. At the time of filming, no one else is seen in the area. This short video was filmed in an old village in the Najd region, home to the most conservative and traditional tribes and families in Saudi Arabia. In another part of the video, the young woman is seen walking or sitting in a sandy desert area. In response to the video's release on Twitter, a hashtag calling for her arrest was launched, and many users protested against her clothing, which violates the special hijab rules for women in Saudi Arabia. These protests come at a time when the Saudi government has attempted to ease some of the strict regulations regarding women's hijab in recent years. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, 31, has been trying to reduce entertainment-related restrictions to appeal to the country's youth, with more than half of Saudi Arabia's population under 25 years old. The Associated Press notes that the Saudi government announced last week that for the first time, girls will be allowed to participate in sports in public schools and physical activity classes will be established for them. The powers of the country's religious police have also been reduced, and they no longer have the legal right to detain individuals. However, despite these measures, strict laws regarding gender segregation and other restrictions on women remain in place. In Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to drive and cannot obtain a passport or travel abroad without the permission of their father or husband. Following the release of the woman's video and the protests on Twitter, some in Saudi Arabia warned that Twitter is being used to restrict and exert pressure on certain citizens. For example, Waheed al-Qamdi, a Saudi writer, tweeted that although this woman violated the country's laws, her actions did not warrant such widespread outrage as she harmed no one with her behavior. Some users defending the young woman's actions shared images of Donald Trump's official visit to Saudi Arabia, showing his wife and daughter without head coverings or abayas. One Twitter user, whose message was shared over 1,700 times, edited Ivanka Trump's face onto the body of the young Saudi woman, writing, 'Enough already, the problem is solved.' In Saudi news websites that published the story about this video, the young woman's image is shown distorted due to censorship. In Saudi Arabia, it is very common to display distorted images of women's faces in billboards and advertisements, while large images of male members of the royal family are displayed throughout the country.