This adorably playful rainbow mural on the Talaee Al-Noor International School in Riyadh reportedly led to a $25,000 fine, and jail for the school administrator who was blamed for the festive art. Why? Because rainbows are seen as “Emblems Of Homosexuality,” and anything remotely gay is a Very Bad Crime in Saudi Arabia.
The news first hit the Arabic-language Twitternets by way of an account associated with the agency that enforces the country’s religious law.
The tweet, from the Saudi Society Channel, also showed that the Talee al-Noor International School has been repainted.
هيئة الأمر بالمعروف
والبلدية والأمارة
تزيل الشعار
وتغرم "مدرسة أجنبية"في الرياض
بمبلغ١٠٠الف
بعد وضعها شعار المثليين pic.twitter.com/sLTldRQ8yt
— قناة المجتمع السعودي (@ksa12300) July 17, 2015
We are shocked.