18 Nov 2024: Videos of the event went viral on social media, showing that the screen on the stage looked like the Kaaba. There was further controversy when the artistes were seen dancing on the stage and performing to the tunes of the music. Many compared the scene to the circumlocution of the Kaaba, calling it an insult to the holy place. The opening ceremony of the Riyadh Season Festival held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, is currently under a big controversy. The reason for this controversy was the screen installed on the stage. In the videos that have surfaced of the program, the screen on the stage is said to look like the Kaaba. The dancing and music of the artists around him was seen as a desecration of Islamic holy places.
Fact Check:
Dr Naif Al-Otaibi from Media Attache, Saudi Embassy Islamabad has Shared Declaration which tell us the real story.
“A video circulating in the Arab world shows the statue and a model of the Kaaba during a fashion show during the Riyadh season. Of course, there is no model of the Kaaba in the kingdom, but it is an image of a mirror attached to the ceiling and the image has been digitally processed with idols attached to it.
For your information, there are famous cube-shaped buildings around the world and no one thought that these are models of the Kaaba. There is no truth in the rumors about the idol and model of the Kaaba in the fashion show in Saudi Arabia.”
Editor: Kamran Raja