JEDDAH: Abu Sin, 19, apparently could not stay away from the “YouNow” smartphone application any longer.
The young Saudi achieved fame through his public online-video friendship with American Christina, 21 — something that in September led to his arrest on charges of unethical behavior. He was subsequently released.
But for the first time since Abu Sin’s arrest, the two long-distance friends have again appeared in a 20-minute video chat, which has gone viral on YouNow and YouTube.
Abu Sin’s return comes after warnings from Saudi authorities and controversy among some Saudis.
Earlier in 2016, the young broadcaster vowed to sever all ties with Christina, something that has, apparently, gone unheeded.
This time however, Abu Sin and Christina apparently found a way around the ban on them appearing together. Abu Sin asked his US friend to cover her hair in accordance with Saudi traditions: “Hair is not permitted in this broadcast,” said Christina who followed Abu Sin’s directions.
Christina, who in the video said she missed her friend living on the other side of the world, gave Abu Sin a warm welcome after months without communication. She gave his new braces a thumbs-up saying, “I’m proud of you.”
The two youngsters expressed their desire to learn each other’s language in order to communicate better. “I want to learn English to avoid embarrassment,” Abu Sin said to Christina through her friend, who was called by the latter to translate.
Christina, who was struggling to understand Abu Sin, said a few innocent fond phrases in Arabic to him, and exchanged hand-heart gestures.
The Riyadh police earlier made it clear that Abu Sin was arrested after violating Article 6 of Anti-Cyber Crime Law, which prohibits the production of content deemed harmful to general order, public decency, and religious values.
Abu Sin became famous worldwide after he appeared in online videos with Christina, who is from California, and their friendship despite geographical, cultural and language barriers.
The young Saudi achieved fame through his public online-video friendship with American Christina, 21 — something that in September led to his arrest on charges of unethical behavior. He was subsequently released.
But for the first time since Abu Sin’s arrest, the two long-distance friends have again appeared in a 20-minute video chat, which has gone viral on YouNow and YouTube.
Abu Sin’s return comes after warnings from Saudi authorities and controversy among some Saudis.
Earlier in 2016, the young broadcaster vowed to sever all ties with Christina, something that has, apparently, gone unheeded.
This time however, Abu Sin and Christina apparently found a way around the ban on them appearing together. Abu Sin asked his US friend to cover her hair in accordance with Saudi traditions: “Hair is not permitted in this broadcast,” said Christina who followed Abu Sin’s directions.
Christina, who in the video said she missed her friend living on the other side of the world, gave Abu Sin a warm welcome after months without communication. She gave his new braces a thumbs-up saying, “I’m proud of you.”
The two youngsters expressed their desire to learn each other’s language in order to communicate better. “I want to learn English to avoid embarrassment,” Abu Sin said to Christina through her friend, who was called by the latter to translate.
Christina, who was struggling to understand Abu Sin, said a few innocent fond phrases in Arabic to him, and exchanged hand-heart gestures.
The Riyadh police earlier made it clear that Abu Sin was arrested after violating Article 6 of Anti-Cyber Crime Law, which prohibits the production of content deemed harmful to general order, public decency, and religious values.
Abu Sin became famous worldwide after he appeared in online videos with Christina, who is from California, and their friendship despite geographical, cultural and language barriers.
