Attention handsome young men: you might want to reconsider any trips to Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this month, the Saudi religious police expelled three men from the United Arab Emirates, apparently for being “too good looking.”
The men were in Riyadh attending the Jenadrivah Heritage & Cultural Festival, and according to Time magazine, they were minding their own business when the police entered the pavilion and whisked them away.
According to the Arabic-language newspaper Elaph, they were removed for fear that women would not be able to resist them.
“A festival official said the three Emiratis were taken out on the grounds they are too handsome and that the Commission members feared female visitors could fall for them,” the newspaper said.
The United Arab Emirates issued a statement after the incident saying the Saudi religious police may have been on alert because an unnamed female artist made an unplanned visit to the pavilion. There was no indication the two events were related.
One of the men named in the incident has become an Internet sensation. Photos of Omar Gala, who, according to his Facebook page, is a “fashion photographer, model, actor, poet” from Dubai, have been plastered across the web.
Recently, the Saudi religious police have been making some efforts to improve their image.
Earlier this month, the Saudi religious police expelled three men from the United Arab Emirates, apparently for being “too good looking.”
The men were in Riyadh attending the Jenadrivah Heritage & Cultural Festival, and according to Time magazine, they were minding their own business when the police entered the pavilion and whisked them away.
According to the Arabic-language newspaper Elaph, they were removed for fear that women would not be able to resist them.
“A festival official said the three Emiratis were taken out on the grounds they are too handsome and that the Commission members feared female visitors could fall for them,” the newspaper said.
The United Arab Emirates issued a statement after the incident saying the Saudi religious police may have been on alert because an unnamed female artist made an unplanned visit to the pavilion. There was no indication the two events were related.
One of the men named in the incident has become an Internet sensation. Photos of Omar Gala, who, according to his Facebook page, is a “fashion photographer, model, actor, poet” from Dubai, have been plastered across the web.
Recently, the Saudi religious police have been making some efforts to improve their image.
