A newsreader has caused a stir in Saudi Arabia by shunning traditional Islamic dress to deliver a bulletin ‘bare-headed’.
The presenter was broadcasting from the London studio of Al Ekhbariya, a state-owned news channel which featured the Kingdom’s first female newsreader when it launched a decade ago.
Women often appear on Saudi TV without wearing headscarves or veils, but the appearance was thought by many to be the first by a newsreader on a government-owned station.
Several other users commented on how unusual the sight was, and some welcomed it as a step forward for personal freedom and women’s rights.
Clips and stills circulating online showed the newsreader in two outfits, suggesting she had opted not to wear a headscarf or veil for at least two bulletins.
But the channel has disappointed those who hoped it was becoming more liberal, releasing a promise that the incident will not happen again.
Al Ekhbariya launched in January 2004 and its first bulletin made headlines by featuring the Islamic state’s first female newsreader, who wore Western clothes with a hijab headscarf.
The newsreader stopped short of wearing the niqab, the full face veil seen as a requirement in other parts of the country.