Saudi Woman Converts: Surprise Coverage
CROSSROADS ARABIA: It’s the first time that I can recall such a story being covered by the Saudi media.
Saudi Courts: Evaders Nowhere To Hide?
CROSSROADS ARABIA: Until a new law kicks in, it’s pretty easy to avoid unfavorable court decisions in Saudi Arabia. How? It’s simple: don’t show up at court!
Women Only ‘Industrial Cities’ For Saudi Arabia
CROSSROADS ARABIA: The announcement of four industrial cities to be staffed entirely by women marks a further step in the ‘separate but equal’ doctrine
‘Diploma Mill’: Easy Qualification for Some Saudis
AMERICAN BEDU: It’s a determinant of salary and position in many organisations but how useful is a university degree for Saudi citizens?
‘Mischief Afoot’: Regulation of Saudi Journalists Is ‘Wrong’
CROSSROADS ARABIA: How can civil servants judge whether a journalists is being ‘professional’? The simple answer is they can’t
Solar Power? Not Enough for Saudi Arabia
CROSSROADS ARABIA: If Saudi Arabia is to secure its energy future nuclear power must be part of the mix
‘Sacked’: Saudi King ‘Had Enough’ of Top Conservative?
CROSSROADS ARABIA: He’s been getting a bit loud recently with positions contrary to those of the King. Time to go.
Labour: Qatar Trade Union Gets the Go Ahead
CROSSROADS ARABIA: Qatar is to allow the formation of trade unions. In addition, it will end the current system of sponsorship for foreign workers.
Online or Behind Closed Doors: The Big Saudi Discussion
M. LYNX-QUALEY: There’s liberation in discussing ideas online but also dangers. Where do young Saudis discuss the big issues?
Profiting from Death: Blood Money and Saudi
CROSSROADS ARABIA: If one cannot pay, then it’s off to the square for a bit of head-chopping. This, the writer says, runs contrary to Islamic purpose.
‘Suspect’ Shisha Banished from Mecca
CROSSROADS ARABIA: Mecca has become a smokeless environment, with Shisha, religiously suspect, being banished to the city’s limits.
Fines, Floggings and Jail for Female Harassers
CROSSROADS ARABIA: The Saudi Authorities have decided to crack down hard on young men who harass women in the Kingdom.
Saudi’s ‘Modern Day Slavery’: The Solution?
CROSSROADS ARABIA: How can Saudi Arabia can continue its system of hiring foreign workers that treats some as slaves – and what is the solution?
Saudi Authorities Crack Down on ‘Book Fair Louts’
CROSSROADS ARABIA: The Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information has taken a firm line on trouble-makers at the Riyadh Book Fair.
Major Clampdown on Saudi Press Freedom
CROSSROADS ARABIA: The now infamous Saudi blogger Hamza Kashgari is not the only one to feel the full force of new Saudi laws.
‘Saher’: Making Saudi Roads Safer
CROSSROADS ARABIA: It’s widely disliked but since its introduction around a year and a half ago Saher has made a major difference.
New Head of Saudi Religious Police: A Moderate?
CROSSROADS ARABIA: A well known supporter of the right of women to work Sheikh Abdullatif Al-Sheikh still has a traditional view of their place within Saudi society.
Saudi Universities Producing ‘Unemployable’ Graduates
CROSSROADS ARABIA: There is a huge problem with third level education in the Kingdom. But will anything ever be done about it?
Saudi Business: Nitiqat Conformity Contortions
CROSSROADS ARABIA: A young Saudi discovered he had been employed by a company about which he knew nothing and to which he had never applied
One Saudi Woman Drives Badly So That Means…
SUSIE OF ARABIA: If one Saudi Arabian woman runs a red light and accumulates a huge number of speeding fines then it follows that all Saudi women are bad drivers. What nonsense.