Saudi woman confronts religious police for trying to chastise her for 'painted nails'

A Saudi woman confronted members of the country's religious police after they accused her of breaking strict modesty rules with her painted nails.

The unidentified woman refused to leave the mall where she was shopping and told the police that her nails are 'none of [their] business'.

After she filmed the incident on her mobile phone and was posted it on YouTube.

The issue heated up when the video went viral on the internet, prompting the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (CPVPV) to interfere.

According to the Daily Mail, has sparked off a debate in Saudi Arabia over the way the commission members should deal with people in public places.

The video shows several men in traditional Saudi dress, stopping the woman and chastising her for her immodesty.

"'The government didn't send you to follow me. The government said there would be no persecution [of women]," she is seen as yelling at the men in the video

Known as 'Mutaween', the CPVPV has been granted power to enforce Sharia Law in Saudi Arabia on the orders of King Abdullah.

They are known for their callous brutality and strict interpretation of Islamic law. In 2002, the Mutaween reportedly stopped girls from escaping a burning school because they were 'not properly covered'.