Bandr al- Swed posted a video that shows him with the sign "free hug" , which went viral . Contrasting reactions on social media. Religious police accuse him of "engaging in practices that offend the local culture and public order ."

Riyadh (AsiaNews / Agencies) - He tried to bring the campaign in Saudi Arabia "free hugs " and the muttawa , the religious police arrested him for "indulging in practices that offend the local culture and public order". This is what happened to a young Saudi, Bandr al- Swed , who on  November 19posted a video on YouTube showing him (pictured) on King Mohammed Abdel Aziz street, one of the shopping streets of the capital with the sign typical of the "free hugs " campaign.

The young man explained that he wanted to bring the proposal of a movement that aims to " brighten " the lives of people offering to hug a stranger to his country. " I liked the idea - he said - and I wanted to bring joy even to Saudi Arabia ."

The video, which lasts three minutes, quickly became viral, reaching nearly a million views. However, the reactions on social media were diverse. On Twitter, there are those who called Bandr al-Swed's proposal - " a nice idea " that " can make people smile ," but also those who called the young man " a man who suffers from psychological problems " and who accused him of imitating the West , forgetting his own Saudi identity.

A view shared by the religious police , officially the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Suppression of Vice, which also arrested another young man surprising passersby with the offer of "free hugs".

 

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