Saudi cleric endorses Valentine

It is a positive social event and congratulating people for it is not against sharia (law)," Ghamdi told Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television.

"It is an act of kindness to share greetings on Western national and social holidays, including Valentine´s Day, exchange red roses with others, as long as it is towards peaceful people who do not share animosity or are being at war with Muslims."Such comments from the Saudi clerical establishment would be inconceivable around two years ago, when the religious police wielded unbridled powers and were notorious for enforcing sex segregation.In recent years, Saudi Arabia launched a series of reforms, including gradually diminishing the their powers to arrest.

Prince Mohammed, who has vowed to return the country to "moderate Islam", has further cut back the political role of hardline clerics in a historic reordering of the Saudi state.Florists openly sold red roses and Valentine´s Day memorabilia in cities such as Jeddah on Wednesday without any trouble from the religious police, previously notorious for disrupting celebrations.it has also sparked concern over a possible backlash from arch-conservatives.