Saudi Arabia might be trying to open up as a society and catch up with the rest of the world on issues of gender equality and opposite sexes mingling, but stories like the one of a man being arrested for sharing a meal with a female co-worker are definitely not helping the Kingdom’s image.

An Egyptian man, reportedly working in a multinational company in Jeddah, recently uploaded a video on social media that showed him sharing a meal with a female Saudi coworker. The clip, which appeared to have been filmed in the office, went viral in the ultraconservative kingdom with some online users expressing outrage at the seemingly normal scene.

At a time when women in Saudi Arabia are being encouraged to join the workforce as part of Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman’s vision, the Egyptian employee learned the consequences of challenging the draconian societal norms in the country the hard way after he was arrested for appearing in the video.

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