Via Times of Israel:

Hamas is cracking down on a new threat to the well-being of the citizens of the Gaza Strip: low-riding pants.

Several Gazan teenagers from Rafah were recently arrested by Hamas police because the clothes they wore were “foreign to Palestinian society, and contradicted the culture, values, and ethical code of the Strip’s residents,” the Hebrew daily Maariv reported on Sunday.

The perpetrators had adopted “Western street fashion” and wore pants that rode so low as to show their underpants.

The arrests prompted discussions on an official Hamas forum, with several people posting outraged comments. Although they opposed the decadent fashion, the punishment did not fit the crime, they argued.

Maariv quoted one Gaza participant’s comment in the Internet forum: “Arrest? I am opposed. It’s personal freedom. It would be enough for the police to launch an educational campaign, not arrest. Why are they pursuing people’s dress?”

Another writer, who criticized the low-pants fashion, nonetheless called the decision to arrest the teens “idiocy.”