From the caption of the picture at the beggining of the report we learn: "Risking the wrath of the religious police, a woman in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, loosens her veil to eat an ice cream". Oh, the horror of it all.
Then we learn: "Ahmed al-Bulawi died after being hauled into a local commission headquarters for being in a car with a woman who was not his close relative; the mutaween apparently acted too hastily, since it turned out that he was employed as the family's driver."
Worse still is this:
"The most scandalous case in recent years involved the deaths of 15 Saudi girls at a school in Mecca, Islam's holiest city, in 2002. Eyewitnesses said that when a fire broke out, mutaween refused to allow the girls to flee, or rescuers to go inside, on the grounds that the students were not wearing the required garments to preserve their modesty. The government, however, absolved the commission of blame. "
So, why does the government allow this? "...the religious establishment, led by the descendants of the founder of Wahhabism, is effectively a partner in ruling Saudi Arabia."
While the left staunchly defend Islam, here's what the ordinary Saudi is starting to say:
"Some Saudis, only half jokingly, refer to the mutaween's behavior as "state-sponsored terrorism," on account of the fear that their combination of religious intolerance and violence inspires. "
Half jokingly or a nervous laugh?
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