Activist Gets in Physical Altercation While Trying to Spray Paint Over Anti-Jihad Subway Poster

An Egyptian-born activist was arrested in New York City on Tuesday after she was caught on video using a can of spray paint to deface a controversial subway station ad that is pro-Israel and anti-Jihad. And the entire incident was caught on video.

Mona Eltahawy was taken into custody for the stunt involving the ad that proclaims, "In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man."

The ad -- the work of activist Pamela Geller -- was originally banned by subway officials, but eventually allowed by the courts.

In the video, Eltahawy can be seen using a can of pink spray paint while trying to blot out the words. "Trying" is key word because another woman -- who seems to be familiar with Eltahawy -- almost immediately throws herself between the spray and the sign, preventing Eltahawy from completely covering up the words. The two women can be seen arguing and then even getting physical. Police eventually arrive and arrest Eltahawy as she demands to know the charges and claims her free speech is being violated [raw footage below -- content warning for language]:

If Eltahawy looks and sounds familiar, that's because you've seen her before. But here's the irony: You likely know Eltahawy because she claims she suffered at the hands of extremists last year during the fall edition of the Arab Spring. Back then she detailed an alleged violent and graphic sexual assault by Egyptian police:

Eltahawy said at the time not only was she sexually assaulted, but the assailants also broke both her arms.

As far as the latest incident, her Twitter account says she's awaiting an initial hearing on charges of criminal mischief (via tweets from a friend who is sending messages on her behalf). The account also shows she broadcasted her intentions beforehand: