Tala Safwan, an Egyptian TikToker, was recently arrested in Saudi Arabia for posting “sexually provocative information” on her social media accounts. Influencer Safwan was detained on July 25 after posting a live video showing her talking to a Saudi woman acquaintance. Safvan felt lonely, so she called her friend to visit her early in the morning.
When Tala’s friend claimed it was too late to see her and she wouldn’t be able to, the TikToker reportedly replied:
“Even better, no one will hear what I’m doing to you because everyone will be asleep. Your shouts won’t be heard because we’ll be having so much fun that they won’t.”
The video went viral after being shared, leading to a huge buzz on social media. A hashtag with the translation “Tala insults society” was also trending on Twitter. The influencer has a significant following on social media, with five million followers on TikTok and more than 80,000 subscribers on YouTube. Her material is mainly aimed at young people, and Arab youth love her modern, quirky style.
The influencer combines funny headlines, challenges and practical jokes in her videos to discuss TV shows, relationships and awkward social situations. In 2021, Tala Safwan became famous on social media and started posting videos discussing Arab superstars like Yasmina Sabri. She has A-list musicians like Nicki Minaj and Billie Eilish in dance videos on her TikTok account.
According to Tala Safwan, viewers misunderstood her video.
In response to the criticism, Tala Safwan broke her silence over the video and said there was no “lesbian undertone” in her remarks. She went on to say that many on the internet misinterpreted what she stated. The TikToker went on to say that the part was deliberately taken out of the entire video to stir up controversy. It is important to remember that homosexuality is still a taboo subject in Saudi Arabia.
Popular Egyptian #TikToker #talasafwan is facing the public prosecutor’s office #Saudi after a controversial video that sparked the hashtag “Tala insults society” and demanded her arrest.
But Tala denied that her video had any sexual subtext and said it was misunderstood!@sophiasgaler pic.twitter.com/LzULSsZ4fs
— Yemen Matters (@YemenMatters_) July 28, 2022
Authorities in Riyadh announced on their Twitter account that they had detained a local man after the video went viral and sparked criticism on social media. However, they withheld the names of Safwan and her friend. The faces of Tala and her companion were obscured in the video uploaded by the authorities.
An automatic translation of the tweet quoted a statement from the Riyadh police:
Police in Riyadh detained a person who was seen talking to another in a broadcast that contained sexual material and suggestions that were offensive to public morality.
Tala Safwan is not the only Saudi influencer facing criticism.
Each influencer has previously faced criticism due to the Kingdom’s strict bans on homosexuality. In 2018, police arrested a group of young men who they said were depicted in a “gay wedding scenario” in another widely shared video. Authorities detained and deported Mohamad al-Bokari for “impersonating women” two years later in 2020. After posting a video advocating equal rights for the LGBTQIA+ community, blogger Yemini was detained for advocating homosexuality on social media.
Categories: Entertaintment
Source: HIS Education