Saudi Casanova strikes back

Saudi Casanova strikes back

Mazen Abdul Jawad, who was charged with publicizing vice and confessing to having sexual relations outside marriage on LBC's "Red Line", is doing some damage control.

July 27, 2009 9:53 by Laura Bashraheel

Mazen Abdul Jawad may not be out of hot water yet for his lewd remarks made on LBC’s “Red Line” last week, but for the time being he is not sitting in a jail cell.

Abdul Jawad raised a storm of anger after appearing on the program talking about the topic of sex in a manner that would be considered racy even by more liberal cultural standards.

But contrary to media reports in the local Arab press, Abdul Jawad is not in jail.

The 32-year-old airline employee has started a campaign of damage control as the public and the authorities discuss what to do with him should he be charged and found guilty of publicizing vice and/or confessing to pre-marital sex. Jail time and lashings has been discussed as a possible punishment.

On Sunday, Abdul Jawal appeared in the pages of a local newspaper apparently wiping away tears from a handkerchief as he apologized and begged for forgiveness.

He maintains that the show’s producers made him appear in the worst possible manner by taking two hours of footage and condensing it down to a minutes-long segment. The show is known for profiling Arabs from different countries and for tackling more taboo subjects.

“We will study the case and eventually present it to the Ministry of Information,” said Ashraf Al Sarraj, the lawyer representing Abdul Jawad in his complaint against LBC.

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Tags: arrest, Crime, LBC, Mazen Abdul Jawad, Red Line, Saudi Arabia, sex