The UAE Welcomed Trump With A Traditional Dance Of Women Flipping Their Hair, Sparking A Controversy
Many saw the performance as a “disgraceful” act to Islam and Arabic culture to have women dancing with their hair instead of covering it.
The UAE welcomed US president Donald Trump with women flipping their hair as part of a traditional dance, sparking controversy.
Trump met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on May 15 at Qasr Al Watan, the UAE’s presidential palace, as part of his diplomatic Middle East tour and secured a "strategic economic partnership" agreement, including US$142 billion in defense and energy deals.
Trump was welcomed with a lavish and traditional ceremony, featuring an honor guard on horseback, a procession of riders on camels and performances by Emirati folk groups celebrating the occasion.
The highlight of the event was a traditional Emirati dance known as Al-Ayyala, featuring women in white robes dramatically flipping their long hair from side to side in perfect synchrony, accompanied by drums and chanting poetry with men lined up behind the women, playing drums and waving sword-like sticks, simulating a battle scene.
Al-Ayyala dance, a UNESCO-recognized cultural art form in Oman and the UAE, historically symbolized the readiness of tribes for battle and wars and was performed to celebrate victories, simulating a battle scene and evolved over time to celebrate joy and unity and is a common feature at weddings and state events in the two countries.
In the UAE, women also participated in this tradition by standing at the front and tossing their long hair in synchronization to show faith in their male counterparts going to war.
The performance drew significant attention on social media, with many describing it as royal, warm and lavish but others saw it as a “disgraceful” act to Islam and Arabic culture to have women dancing with their hair instead of covering it and disregard to the plight of Palestinians as Israel’s war in Gaza intensified, calling it the “death of Arab.”
Completely disregarding Islamic boundaries, the UAE organises a welcome for President Trump which included the "khaleegy" dance - which entails women and girls rhythmically swaying their hair.
— Tera Baap (@teerabaap1947) May 16, 2025
Disgraceful act showing pre Islamic abuse of women by Arabs pic.twitter.com/l9lfC1pTmg
On May 5, Israel said it is intensifying its operation in Gaza, vowing to occupy parts of the Strip indefinitely, forcibly moving Palestinians to the south as it continues to block all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza since March 2, leaving more than 2 million Palestinians to imminent famine.
You Might Also Be Interested In
Cherry Mohamed
Cherry Mohamed
Kassy Cho
