Um Tahir is surrounded by family and friends at the new cemetery. Only the bodies of the 4 men stand in the bare land.

Tasneem Alsultan

Protectors of the Mosque

I am a Saudi woman. Constantly being asked the same questions as: “How is it in Saudi?” “Is it true that you are slaves to men?” “But you can’t drive?” “How are you surviving in such a country?”.
Alongside many of the Saudi women, we’ve become desensitized. We repeat the same answers again and again. Always explaining that we understand that it appears to be an enigma to outsiders, we have no choice but to see it as the norm. But as the recent chaos surrounds us in the neighboring countries in the Middle East, we Saudis appreciate one thing more than ever…our safety. So as Saudis, we all become sensitive to any outsiders jab, however fair or unfair it seems.

As Saudi Arabians, we view ISIS only through television screens. Far from the reality we live in. Perhaps they live among us, created by our mindsets if not anything else, but it’s a truth we have decided to ignore as it’s very distant in space. Only a couple of months ago, ISIS members began making threats in Saudi. The first victims were 21 killed in a Shia village on a Friday noon prayer, end of May. Nothing compared to Syria or Iraq, but still the shock was great. A point to mention, that the Saudi Shia sect had been identified as Muslim, only recently during the days of King Abdullah. The nation faced its first of its kind of internal terrorist attack.

A couple of weeks later, another threat by ISIS was made to a mosque in Dammam. This too was a Shia mosque. As the previous one had been unprepared for, all the Shia mosques had asked the women to not attend the Friday prayers until further notice. What makes the scene different than any other, is that a young 25 year old Jaleel, decided to initiate and volunteer to search the prayers entering the mosque. His older brother Mohammed, younger cousin, and close friend joined him too. The four had a busy social life that included sports, video-games, and extensive traveling. No signs of a livelihood based on depression. On the contrary, Jaleel’s mother explained how her youngest son just completed his undergraduate study from the U.S. and had just gotten engaged a couple of weeks ago to a young Saudi girl that lived close by. Jaleel and his fiancee were preparing for the wedding. His older brother held several jobs that usually included volunteering for the neighborhood mosque, teaching the children Qur’an. He had 2 young sons, that he would take them to accompany him to the mosque.

Um Tahir shares the details of the events leading to her two sons death. Her two grandsons stand close listening, and show their fathers clothes and badge to volunteer at the mosque.

Um Tahir shares the details of the events leading to her two sons death. Her two grandsons stand close listening, and show their fathers clothes and badge to volunteer at the mosque.

Um Tahir shares the details of the events leading to her two sons death. Her two grandsons stand close listening, and show their fathers clothes and badge to volunteer at the mosque.

Um Tahir shares the details of the events leading to her two sons death. Her two grandsons stand close listening, and show their fathers clothes and badge to volunteer at the mosque.

Um Tahir is surrounded by family and friends at the new cemetery. Only the bodies of the 4 men stand in the bare land.

A celebration for the family of the four martyrs was held by 200 women in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

Um Tahir shares the details of the events leading to her two sons death. Her two grandsons stand close listening, and show their fathers clothes and badge to volunteer at the mosque.

A celebration for the family of the four martyrs was held by 200 women in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

A celebration for the family of the four martyrs was held by 200 women in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

Jaleel, sat playing video-games across the television screen, whilst his three brothers, sister and parents sat next to him. “Mashallah, your hands are so big Jaleel!” His sister commented. “My big hands help me catch any ball thrown at me” he told her. The next day, on a Friday morning, Jaleel and his older brother embrace their mother and ask her to pray for them, as they understand that they may not return home. The video camera at the mosque tapes a selfie taken by Jaleel and his cousin seconds before they attack the ISIS self bomber. The 4 men run towards him, with Jaleel ripping the explosive off. His big hands save more than 600 men praying in the mosque.

“I miss him more than anything. I love all my children, but I miss his humor the most. Always joking, and hugging me. He calls me everyday from the U.S. for hours. Do you know how many times he would tell me that life is great? And that he wants to make me proud…” She pauses. Jaleel’s mother, Um Tahir, sat with me for a few hours the first day I had set to meet her after viewing a YouTube video of her holding the remaining body parts of her two sons. She kept repeating: “How proud can a mother be to have not one, but two brave men?” I sat that night with my Saudi friends and we all discussed how it was unusual for any mother in Saudi to handle her sons death so positively. Naturally, we expected threats full of anger. Either way, not a calm and positive appearance in the media.

She introduced me to her two grandsons, who have been wearing their fathers cap and badge, along with whatever clothing they could find his scent in. “I don’t believe the terrorists were Sunni. They’re not muslims. They can’t be. It’s a plan you know. First they’ll attack a few Shia mosques and tomorrow they will attack Sunni mosques to spark hate between us. You wait and see” She took me to Jaleel’s bedroom, and then told me “I don’t feel sad…On the contrary, if my boys didn’t volunteer, imagine how many mothers would be weeping now?” I was in tears. I silently brushed my own, and attempted to divert the attention from my self. “I want their death to raise awareness to all the young youth. We have to unite. There was a time in Saudi when there was no Sunni and Shia resentment. But it’s easier to divide and conquer.”

The next day, was a Friday. As the men went to the mosques, I followed them later with Um Tahir and her family to the cemetery.

The bare land had only four graves standing. Immediately I could tell it was a Shiaa graveyard. With the green and black flags decorating the site, and with the women sitting alongside their relatives all reading Qur’an. The emotional view in front of me was unusual to say the least. Sunni women in Saudi are not allowed to visit any graves. Sunni religious clerics explained that it would create an emotional disastrous scene and women in Islam are not allowed to weep. Yet the Shiaa women were encouraged by their religious clerics to vent as much as they needed. “See? Because of their death, we now have a cemetery. No need to bury my sons 2 hours away from me. I have high hopes that we can now have official schools and mosques that are built by the government for the Shiaa community in Saudi” she excitedly shared with me, sitting near her sons grave.

That week, a celebration for the family of the four martyrs was held by 200 women in the Eastern Province. It was led by a group of women who have been holding summer camps for the last 10 years mostly for the young Shiaa teenagers. As expected, it was all female. The 4 men were now titled: “The protectors of the mosque” and each mother presented a speech as she was awarded as a mother of a hero. Um Tahir told the 200 guests: “I’m a mother no more than most of you here. Yet, I had one goal when raising my family. If we love everyone around us, as much as we love ourselves, then the world will become a better place” It was the look of admiration that filled the ballroom, as each woman stood to embrace Um Tahir one after the other. There are many images that I can’t share as some of the women were either showing their hair or face, when they wouldn’t otherwise. But towards the end of the event, Um Tahir concludes by telling me: “I have allowed you in my life and shared my story with you, in hopes of you sharing with the world that this is a normal Saudi family” knowing by sharing her story, that all of us understand that she is far from the norm.

Bio

Graduating with a BA and MA in Linguistics and English Literature, Tasneem decided to have her MA thesis specific as an ethnographic study on Saudi women abroad. After teaching english at Portland State University, University College of Bahrain, and later in University of Dammam, Tasneem decided to venture into Photography. Initially shooting weddings in the Arab Gulf region, she later shot many more destination weddings abroad in Europe, Asia and south America. Whilst shooting over 120 weddings, Tasneem made sure to document real emotions. The stories of culture, traditions and of course how they met. Always connecting the similarities across regions and boarders. After shooting weddings for five years, she now uses her story telling experience to document topics she’s always been interested in: women, traditions and culture. Hoping to shed light to many voices that have been subjected by the “others”.

Related Links

Tasneem Alsultan