British presenter arrested in Saudi Arabia after being wearing Palestinian keffiyeh

RIYADH, Nov. 17 (YPA) – A British actor and presenter, who went to Mecca on a Hajj trip with his family, was arrested by Saudi soldiers after being wearing the Palestinian keffiyeh or the scarf.

Islah Abdul Rahman decided to go to perform Umrah in late October and raised concerns about the suppression of any symbols or manifestations of solidarity for Palestine in Saudi Arabia.
Abdul Rahman explained: “Four soldiers stopped me for wearing a white keffiyeh around my head and a colored Palestinian tasbih around my wrist.”

“They took me to an off-site location where they detained people for possible crimes or violations,” he continued. “When i just was arrested, there were other soldiers who interrogated and asked me about my nationality, why I was here, where I had traveled from, and how long I had spent here.”

“It was clear that keffiyeh was the problem,” he said. “They were speaking in Arabic but kept repeating ‘Palestinian keffiyeh’ and looking at the scarf.

The Saudi authorities arrest worshipers who show signs of solidarity with Gaza and pray for Palestine in the holy places in Mecca and Medina, according to the British Middle East website.

AA