17 Filipinas arrested over Halloween party in Saudi Arabia

Photos have emerged online of partygoers dressed as zombie nuns.

PHOTO BY SOCIAL MEDIA

17 Filipinas arrested over Halloween party in Saudi Arabia

DUBAI – Seventeen Filipino women have been arrested following a raid in a Riyadh compound where they were holding a Halloween party, a Philippine official said.

The women are currently being held at the Al Nisa prison in Riyadh, according to the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh.

They were “among a number of persons who were taken into custody by Saudi intelligence operatives who raided a compound in Riyadh where the Halloween party was taking place,” said Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Adnan Alonto.

Saudi authorities have agreed to temporarily release the 19 Filipinos to the custody of the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, the Department of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday.

According to officials, Saudi intelligence agents raided the compound where the Filipinas lived after neighbours complained of noise coming from the complex.

It is not clear what charges have been filed against them, but it is believed that organisers of the party have been charged with holding an event without permit and disturbing peace.

Photos also emerged online of partygoers dressed as zombie nuns. A spokesman said that police in Riyadh were concerned by “disorderly conduct” and the “use of masks and strange costumes”. GAD/Expat Media

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