The Saudi Twitterverse is abuzz with news of a Saudi woman attacking her harasser in a Damam mall. The 15-second footage quickly went viral early Wednesday morning, and the hashtag #Girl_Hits_Harasser_in_Damam was the second trending topic in the country.
The video is security footage of a woman going after a man with a broom in a Damam mall before he fled. The funny video was met with mixed reviews.
Girl power was celebrated
"Someone's harassing you? Hit him, defend yourself – don't wait for a [legal] decision!"
Brooms were given credit as well
"Hey girls, each of you should take a broom with her [when she goes out] next time."
"Using brooms helps tone the arms' muscles and chases the animals away"
Some took the chance to offer advice on self-protection
"Girls, [buy] a stun gun, it's light, and all you have to do is put in your purse"
"With a lack in the law, my advice to girls is to carry with a taser to guard against blood-thirsty animals"
At the same time, this incident brought on serious debate about an anti-harassment law
"It's necessary to enact heavy punishments on whoever harasses women, even if it was verbal. We are sick of seeing these human beasts in our society!"
"Cases like this have become really common, and there isn't a clear law that can target the harasser.... No wonder she's taken matters in her own hands!"
Yet, some pointed out what we'd all missed
"I didn't see any harassment. I saw a man being attacked by a woman while he shopped. There is nothing that proves he harassed her. He can sue her just by using this footage."
"We didn't see any harassment. The video only showed a woman who suddenly attacked [a man] for unknown reasons!"