Saudi backpedals on video labelling feminism ‘extremism’

Saudi authorities have distanced themselves from an official video that sparked controversy after it branded feminism, homosexuality and atheism as extremist ideas.

Saudi Arabia’s state security agency posted the animated video on Twitter last weekend at a time when de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seeking to open up the austere kingdom to foreign tourists and overhaul its ultra-conservative image.

The tweet has since been taken down.

The security agency said the video contained “many mistakes” and suggested that those behind it would face a formal investigation, according to a statement posted late Tuesday by the official Saudi Press Agency.

It also rejected a report in Al-Watan, a local daily, that said feminists will be jailed and subject to flogging.