Riot police fired tear gas at Islamists protesting reality TV star Kim Kardashian’s visit to Bahrain Saturday, according to The Associated Press. Ms. Kardashian was visiting the country for the launch of her Millions of Milkshakes franchise.

Despite nearly causing a riot, the star of E!’s “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” seemed to enjoy her time in Bahrain. “Thanks Sheikh Khalifa for your amazing hospitality. I’m in love with The Kingdom of Bahrain,” Ms. Kardashian tweeted. The AP reports that Bahrain’s foreign minister retweeted the post.

Not only did Ms. Kardashian thank Sheikh Khalifa, but she praised the people of Bahrain and promoted the country as a tourist destination for people from the United States.

“I love the girls here; their make up and hair are beautiful,” said Ms. Kardashian, according to The Gulf Daily News. “People from the States should come here because the country and the people are so amazing and welcoming that I am planning to be back here on my vacation.”

Citing a local newspaper, Reuters reports that approximately 100 Sunni Salafists protested with banners outside The Walk Bahrain, a local mall, after some MPs attempted to block the visit due to what they said was Ms. Kardashian’s “bad reputation.” According to witnesses, police were able to disperse the protesters with tear gas and stun grenades without any casualties.

One of the protesters held a sign that read, “Syria receives martyrs while Bahrain receives whores,” reports CNN.

While hardline Sunni Muslim MPs tried to make her visit to Bahrain a difficult one, Ms. Kardashian’s fans made the trip well worth it for the paparazzi favorite. Reuters reports that thousands of fans went crazy as Ms. Kardashian launched her Millions of Milkshakes franchise. The news source notes that these fans spent the equivalent of $1,360 to attend the event.

For some girls, the opportunity to see Ms. Kardashian was a chance of a lifetime.

“We have come here because Kim is an inspiration and we learn a lot from her show,” 18-year-old Danya Al Taweel, who was at the franchise opening with her sister, told The Gulf Daily News. “The advice that she gives of following our hearts is something we have taken seriously in our lives and our advice to her is always keep following your heart.”

Despite efforts by Islamists to prevent Ms. Kardashian from visiting the country, the motion failed to gain momentum and was not put to a vote.

Is Ms. Kardashian’s “bad reputation” due to her status as a sex symbol or the fact that she recently tweeted, “praying for Israel,” during a flare up in the tensions between Israelis and Palestinians? During the latest round of fighting in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Ms. Kardashians tweeted her support for Israel and was heavily criticized for doing so, even receiving death wishes from some of those who took particular offense to the reality TV star’s pro-Israel tweet.

Shortly after her pro-Israel tweet, Ms. Kardashian attempted to quell the torrent of criticism with another tweet: “Praying for everyone in Palestine and across the world.”

Upset by the reaction to her tweets, Ms. Kardashian deleted both tweets. She eventually decided that the best PR move would be to issues a full apology for her pro-Israel tweet.

“I want to own up to and explain that earlier today I sent out two tweets about saying prayers for the people in Palestine and Israel and after hearing from my followers, I decided to take down the tweets because I realized that some people were offended and hurt by what I said, and for that I apologize,” she wrote on her blog.

Whether protests during Ms. Kardashian’s visit to Bahrain were inspired by her status as a sex symbol or her recent pro-Israel tweet, the reality TV star is likely to upset religious hardliners in many countries around the globe.