Saudischer Kleriker: Valentinstag ist nicht 'haram'

Bedenkt man, wie sie jahrelang diesen Tag bekämpft haben, so demonstriert eine solche Aussage, dass sich in Saudi Arabien wirklich etwas tut:

A prominent Saudi cleric on Wednesday endorsed Valentine's Day, long forbidden in the ultra-conservative kingdom, calling it a "positive social event" that is not linked to religion.

The comment from Ahmed Qassim al-Ghamdi, former chief of the religious police in Mecca, comes as 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pursues a far-reaching liberalisation drive that has upended years of conservative tradition.

"It is a positive social event and congratulating people for it is not against sharia [law]," Ghamdi told Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television.

"It is an act of kindness to share greetings on Western national and social holidays, including Valentine's Day, exchange red roses with others, as long as it is towards peaceful people who do not share animosity or are being at war with Muslims."

Such comments from the Saudi clerical establishment would be inconceivable around two years ago, when the religious police wielded unbridled powers and were notorious for enforcing sex segregation.

Und erstmals wurde der Valentinstag auch wieder in Mosul gefeiert:

The streets of Mosul have seen plenty of blood, but on Wednesday the Iraqi city's markets were red with Valentine's Day gifts instead -- for the first time since the end of jihadist rule.

Shops did a brisk trade selling plastic roses and heart-shaped balloons, something that under their former jihadist rulers would have been a crime punishable by death.

Student Rafal Fathi donned a full-length black abaya and headed to a market in Muthana district to buy a red teddy bear. "When I get home, I'm going to dress differently for the occasion," said the 22-year-old. Asked who the gift was for, she blushed and refused to say.