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I'm not sure the etymology of the word has much to do with it; the idea of religious police is pretty common on one level or another in almost all Islamic countries. It takes various forms depending on what the government decides to do, naturally; the more religious-theocratic the government, the more likely it'll be a full branch of the police or even its own group. Take its incarnation in Saudi Arabia and compare it to the village enforcement groups found in northern Pakistani villages, for instance. Or the versions in Egypt and Yemen, which have (at least at this point) more to do about making sure that the only version of Islam practiced is the state-sponsored one. Overall, the fact remains that MANY Islamic nations have religious police of some form or another, and leaving out the fact that it is NOT an institution unique to Saudi Arabia is inaccurate, as is claiming that it ""only"" exists in Saudi Arabia and Iran. "