Saudi religious police get pepper sprayed by girls
posted at 10:41 am on September 25, 2007 by Bryan
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I often ask whether the world is becoming more like Saudi Arabia, or is Saudi Arabia becoming more like the rest of the world. I usually ask it after something bad has happened in Europe, either a critic of Islam has been threatened, or some leftist intellectual makes the case for Islam while slamming Christianity. The answer helps me figure out which side — Western freedom or Islamist tyranny — has the upper hand in the war of ideas. Here’s a story that makes me ask the question again.
Dammam, Asharq Al-Awsat- Members of Khobar’s Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice were the victims of an attack by two Saudi females, Asharq Al-Awsat can reveal.
According to the head of the commission in Khobar, two girls pepper sprayed members of the commission after they had tried to offer them advice.
The Virtue and Vice cops probably do this every day: Confront “inappropriately dressed” females (and the inappropriateness probably means that they showed an extra inch of ankle or wrist). But it doesn’t usually end up like this:
Consequently, the two girls started verbally abusing the commission members, which then lead to one of the girls pepper-spraying them in the face as the other girl filmed the incident on her mobile phone, while continuing to hurl insults at them.
The V&V cops did eventually get the girls under control, take them to the police station and wring an apology out of them.
But the girls maced the Saudi V&V cops and lived to tell the tale. Now they just need to upload their cell phone video to YouTube.
(via Instapundit)
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Whoooooooo!
see-dubya on September 25, 2007 at 10:44 AM
How do you say Paris Hilton in Arabic??
Let’s just hope that these girls are seen again (at least alive)
HarryStar on September 25, 2007 at 10:46 AM
So the veil is actually a gas mask? Cool!
James on September 25, 2007 at 10:46 AM
Those girls are awesome. Unfortunately they can probably expect a backlash, so we better just smuggle them out of Saudi right now. I doubt we’ll have any shortage of volunteers to put them up.
ReubenJCogburn on September 25, 2007 at 10:47 AM
Payback’s a bitch.
flipflop on September 25, 2007 at 10:52 AM
idk if the government over there has the political capital with their people to be killin girls…homos maybe, but young girls maybe not
ernesto on September 25, 2007 at 10:53 AM
And these girls lived to tell the tale? Amazing…
…and niice!
JetBoy on September 25, 2007 at 10:55 AM
This is brilliant. One can only hope that Pepper Spray fever catches on and spreads to Iran and Afghanistan.
Come to think of it, they could use some of this stuff in Dearbornistan, USA.
Buy Danish on September 25, 2007 at 10:56 AM
Hmmm…I’ve never seen that before.
flipflop on September 25, 2007 at 10:56 AM
I have a hard time believing this, but I hope it’s true and I hope the girls recover from the torture that resulted in the apology.
Privatestock on September 25, 2007 at 10:56 AM
Sweet! On the other hand the Saudi’s probably confiscated the phone.
FireFly on September 25, 2007 at 10:58 AM
I think this software yanks out posts with certain words (not discounting the possibility of false positives) and queues them for human review.
Ochlan on September 25, 2007 at 11:02 AM
You go girl! I’m listening to your ROAR!!!!!!!!
Dread Pirate Roberts VI on September 25, 2007 at 11:02 AM
Um. When they said the girls apologized after being “questioned” by the police, that is Arab Newsspeak for “beaten.”
Dammit. I just found that one on my own, and scheduled my post for the noon hang, and you already beat me to it.
Meryl Yourish on September 25, 2007 at 11:02 AM
I wonder if it was halal pepper spray. I see a new marketing opportunity for some hip, Moslem entrepreneur.
“Keep Your Purity the Moslem Way
with new and improved JihadSpray”
“Blast the Peepers
with Allah’s Peppers“
Thomas the Wraith on September 25, 2007 at 11:06 AM
They must have some very powerful male relatives
entagor on September 25, 2007 at 11:09 AM
Thomas the Wraith on September 25, 2007 at 11:06 AM
lol. I think you are on to something there.
FireFly on September 25, 2007 at 11:10 AM
Investment alert:
Buy stocks in pepper spray manufacturers.
Mcguyver on September 25, 2007 at 11:16 AM
I recall reading an account of Saudi females eating ice cream cones in a mall. They were approached by the V & V and told to keep their tongues in their mouths!
Babs on September 25, 2007 at 11:19 AM
Remember, the Saudi Religious Police were the savages who stopped 15 girls from escaping a burning school because they were not wearing their headscarves. If these girls lived to tell, they are fortunate.
DrMagnolias on September 25, 2007 at 11:21 AM
Awesome.
We should ship some more pepper spray over there for all the other oppressed women in the Muslim world. I think this could catch on.
CP on September 25, 2007 at 11:25 AM
I don’t believe an apology was all the girls had to give. If so, the stage is being set for revolt in the kingdom.
darwin on September 25, 2007 at 11:31 AM
I say go straight to GuyPods.
see-dubya on September 25, 2007 at 11:31 AM
Even if they did, how long would it be until YouTube flagged it as inappropriate and it gets mysteriously “deleted by user.”
its vintage duh on September 25, 2007 at 11:41 AM
New pepper spray ad lines
“If He Tries to See Your Face
Just Give Him a Blast of Mace.”
“JihadSpray: It’s Like a Gitmo in His Eyes.”
“JihadSpray: He’ll Wish It Was Waterboarding.”
Thomas the Wraith on September 25, 2007 at 11:52 AM
First the women request permission to drive and were turned down because they wouldn’t be under the supervision of their male relatives.
Now the V&V “police” get pepper sprayed.
I think the worm has turned in Saudi for the women.
Power to the Women!
Where are our “lauded” feminists to encourage them, smuggle in pepper spray, have tactical meetings, etc.?
Mommynator on September 25, 2007 at 11:53 AM
Nuke the Mutawain!
thejackal on September 25, 2007 at 11:57 AM
The proper term for the religious police is the “mutawwa.” The walk around with sticks no thicker than the thumb and beat women on the parts of their body that is improperly exposed. And they don’t offer “advice.” They harrass the women until they are off the streets.
Of the billions of dollars of aid to Indonesia after the Boxing Day tsunami, a good chunk was spent setting up the religious police there. Our aid dollars subsidize the beating and flogging of women in public.
BelchSpeak on September 25, 2007 at 11:59 AM
brave girls. :salute:
trailortrash on September 25, 2007 at 12:04 PM
Heh. Can we get a flashback to the hot Iranian kicking the vice witch? That video was great.
Theworldisnotenough on September 25, 2007 at 12:08 PM
Not to be pessimistic, but I’m expecting to hear of their deaths in the near future. The way honor killings work just for women who were raped, these two are gonna need bodyguards.
However, I’ve gotta say RIGHT ON, SISTER!
MadisonConservative on September 25, 2007 at 12:08 PM
if only this were more common.
jbnyc on September 25, 2007 at 12:11 PM
That would be pretty extreme. A post somewhere a couple of months ago indicated that that Iranian “advisors” most frequently approached those who hair wasn’t covered completely enough or their overcoats (forget the name) were too short or too form-fitting.
eeyore on September 25, 2007 at 12:19 PM
Here is story from Saudi Arab news plus other incident
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=101656&d=25&m=9&y=2007
The commission’s teams patrol public places to ensure women are not harassed, sexes don’t mingle and shops close for prayers. “Two members of the commission were attacked, cursed and sworn at by two women, who were blatantly dolled up,” Al-Marshoud said, meaning the women were wearing makeup.
In a related development, commission members banned female shoppers from sitting in a makeshift outdoor restaurant to have their iftar meals in a low-income neighborhood in Jeddah because men were already seated at special tables set up for the fasting month, according to the daily Al-Watan. The paper quoted Muhammed Mehdawi as saying commission members forced his wife and children to eat their food while standing next to him. Other women stood by the stands that run the modest eatery.
Ali Al-Hayyan, head of the commission’s Jeddah branch, said the agents’ actions were meant as a deterrent, “especially since some of the women were dolled up, and also to prevent the mixing of the sexes that could happen at such events and which our religion rejects,” the paper said.
William Amos on September 25, 2007 at 12:19 PM
Beeeyoutiful! I wanna see that video.
Pablo on September 25, 2007 at 12:25 PM
Yeah, those Islamic Fundamentalists are so tolerant… sarc off/
Good job, girls. Now, if more of those Arabic women will do the same, maybe some things will start to change for the better. A Women’s Revolution is what they need…
pullingmyhairout on September 25, 2007 at 12:27 PM
Sweet! On the other hand the Saudi’s probably confiscated the phone.
FireFly on September 25, 2007 at 10:58 AM
They probably did, but if the woman sent the video to someone, it might be too late. Hopefully the cat is already out of the bag.
forest on September 25, 2007 at 12:29 PM
You could probably hide quite a non-lethal arsenal in a burqa…
trigon on September 25, 2007 at 12:47 PM
I, too, fear for these women’s lives, while applauding their gutsy response.
As much as I’d like to see the cell phone video, I wonder if YouTube is blocked over there.
Last is First on September 25, 2007 at 12:55 PM
MUST see that video!!
You go, Girls!!
tickleddragon on September 25, 2007 at 1:06 PM
Wait a sec, Saudi women without male escorts?
Sompting fishy about this story.
Kini on September 25, 2007 at 1:16 PM
Really? Do you have some sort of evidence for that? I was there. Reportedly there was exactly one patrol car for these guys in all of Aceh. Six months after the fact I would say headscarf-wearing was at about 60%.
I have yet to hear of beatings in aceh for dress. They have done it for premarital sex, and only the girl for that. I’m not saying they’re a model society. But I find it a strech that our aid dollars are propping up the virtue police there.
TexasDan on September 25, 2007 at 1:21 PM
I’m thinking that Saudi girls need TASERS. Now that would be a video worth seeing.
Buzzy on September 25, 2007 at 2:52 PM
It’s definitely NOT one world out there. Pray for the girls. That’s big trouble if their identities are known. I’d bet they wouldn’t post the video on YOUtube because YOUtube would give the V & V a call on their RED phone with a direct, secure line.
Rugged Individual on September 25, 2007 at 3:23 PM
This story is fishy. In the Saudi Arabia, they execute for lesser offenses.
jihadwatcher on September 25, 2007 at 6:07 PM
True, jihadwatcher, but, with the world becoming more and more open, and with the huge amounts of not only media, but embassies (and spy agencies) in Saudi, that kind of thing gets tougher and tougher. Fortunately.
Let’s hope the two girls do not just “disappear” in the dead of night.
William Teach on September 25, 2007 at 7:14 PM
I agree with that 100 percent. Maybe even a few pistols would help them too. I’m sure Tammy Bruce and BlondeSagcity would be willing to help them out.
WildBillK on September 25, 2007 at 8:31 PM
They missed the eyes, or the V&V loons wouldn’t have caught them.
These girls need to practice more.
Spray in eyes, kick in crotch, run like hell.
Repeat, as needed, from Fez to Jakarta.
profitsbeard on September 25, 2007 at 9:19 PM
How about “Pork ‘n Pepper” brand?
Texas Nick 77 on September 26, 2007 at 4:40 AM