Saudi Arabia: The Marriage of #Tabukgirl · Global Voices
Mona Kareem

It is not the first time we've seen a father wanting to marry off his minor daughter to an older man, especially in the countries of Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Through social networks the controversial story of the ‘Girl of Tabuk’ has in the past few days emerged.
News reports site the girl as being 17 years old, however social networks site cite the #Tabukgirl as being 14.  No matter what her age, if it wasn't for her uncle the girl's father would have married her off to a 60-year old man. Her uncle has legally filed a complaint against his brother to stop this marriage and a decision was made to stop until the court, as reported, makes a decision on the case next October.
Graphic work by Kuwaiti Artist Mohammed Sharaf condemning what happened to the girl of Tabuk.
Amongst the flood of reactions in Twitter, a Saudi MA student nicknamed Aimee Rash (@AimeeRash) asked for the following in her country:
@AimeeRash: we need to set a law that stops parents & guardians from forcing their girls into marriage or bans any marriage under the age of 18.
PhD student Maha Al-Zayer (@malzayer180) [ar] also demanded the same:
احنا لازم نقدم خطاب بنص قانون لا لزواج القاصرات
Saudi Twitter user Aiman (aimn1984) [ar] attacked those who do not respect the rights of women and children:
من يقصي المرأة ولا يعترف بحقوقها ومن لا يصرخ من اجل حماية الطفولة هو ليس من البشر مهما كانت جنسيته ومهما كان دينه
Dana Qaddoura (DanaQV) condemned what has happened to the Girl of Tabuk saying:
@DanaQV: I'm sorry, but I honestly can't see myself giving away my child to a man old enough to be my grandpa
Khalil Jubran (third_point) [ar] refuted the debate about whether she agreed to the marriage or not saying:
الطفله طفله وافقت ام رفضت الزواج مايحصل جريمة ضد الانسانيه وكل الاطراف اب وزوج وماذون ومفتي وشاهد وصامت شركاء بالجريمه
Saudi Blogger Zaki Safar (@Zaki_Safar) wrote about how the story of Tabuk's girl reflects the masculine image of Saudi society:
@Zaki_Safar: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: where religion is tailored to fit man's sexual proclivities
Another Saudi, Amr Dulaimi, (@Amr_D) expressed his shame of having this incident in his country:
@Amr_D: Is #TabukGirl a fiction story? We r in #2011! Im ashamed of having the same passport as this pedophile mutha fucka
Saudi journalist Abdullah Haydhah (@AbdullahHaydhah) [ar] tweeted some piece of information about an upcoming interview with the girl's uncle:
في لقاء أجرته الزميلة غادة محمد.. وسينشر لاحقا بإيلاف.. عم فتاة تبوك يوضح أنه تعرض للتهديد من أخيه حال وقف تزويج الفتاة
Aroob Aloofi, (@AroobM) another female Saudi Twitter user, wrote a tweet in disgust of this marriage:
@AroobM: Marrying a minor makes you a #pedophile. You sick bastards want a little girl, not a wife.