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#1 [Permalink] Posted on 28th March 2014 21:58

'We are cut off, isolated and alone': Imprisoned Saudi princesses blame their father King Abdullah as their mother calls on Obama to help free them
28 Mar 2014

Two Saudi Princesses who claim to have been imprisoned by their father for 13 years have told how they are 'cut off, isolated and alone' after their mother called on President Obama to help set them free.

Princesses Sahar, 42, and Jawaher, 38, whose mother is divorced from King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, say they are effectively being held under house arrest in the royal compound in Jeddah.

They claim they are not allowed to travel or even leave their home and that the internet is their only window onto the world.

Prisoners: Princesses Sahar and Jawaher said they are effectively being held under house arrest in the royal compound in Jeddah
In an exclusive interview with Channel 4 News, the princesses told how security has been tightened since they went public with their story two weeks ago and they are no longer even allowed to make trips with armed guards for food, as they had been previously.

Princess Sahar says: 'This is a risk we're taking, we're happy to do it, we understand full well the repercussions, but we don't know what's going to happen.'

The Princesses say their sisters Maha and Hala are also being held in the Royal compound in separate villas.

'Locked up' Saudi princesses give a message to Barack Obama. It follows a plea from their mother�Alanoud AlFayez, 57, to Obama for help freeing her four adult daughters she says have been held in a Saudi royal palace against their will for over a decade.

'Mr Obama should take this opportunity to address these grave violations committed against my daughters,' said AlFayez.

AlFayez, who has lived in London since Abdullah divorced her in 2003, said her ex-husband's treatment of their daughters has worsened lately after 13 years in confinement.

She told AFP that their already rare trips outside to buy food and medicine for themselves and their pets have now stopped.

'Since 13 years, my daughters Sahar, Maha, Hala and Jawaher are being held captive,' AlFayez said. 'They need to be saved and released immediately.'

AlFayez has written to the UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to say that her daughters are 'imprisoned, held against their will, cut off from the world'.

AlFayez fled Saudi Arabia after Abdullah divorced her in 2003 and has lived in London since. She was just 15 when she had her four daughter

Sahar and Jawaher told the Sunday Times in an email that they were being kept alone in a house most of which is closed off as they have been left to fend for themselves with nobody to help them with the housework.

They did not reveal how they got access to internet.

'We have no passports or ID, we are under house arrest, with little food left for ourselves and pets,' Sahar, wrote to AFP.

'On their orders, they have been literally starving us since last Wednesday. We are now living on one meal a day, leaving the little remaining meat for our pets and sipping little water in this heat, to save up. Our energy is quite low and we are trying our best to survive.' she wrote.

Abdullah became king of Saudi Arabia in 2005. The oil-rich state is a key ally of the U.S. in the Middle East and its extensive royal family enjoy massive wealth, with the king one of the world's richest men.

Speaking out: Sahar is the eldest daughter and has somehow remained able to convey to the world the depraved state of human rights, especially against women, in Saudi Arabia. Ms Alfayez was only 15 years old when she married King Abdullah, who was then in his 40s, but he divorced her just over a decade later.

The king, who has 38 children by a number of wives, has placed his four daughters with Alfayez under the control of three of their half-brothers, according to Sahar.

Under Saudi law, girls and women are forbidden from travelling, conducting official business, or undergoing certain medical procedures without the express permission of their male guardians.

Sahar said that the sisters had enjoyed a pampered adolescence but that animosity towards her and her sisters had grown after they began to complain to their father about the poverty endured by most of the Saudi people.

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#2 [Permalink] Posted on 29th March 2014 07:14

Saudi women renew push for the right to drive

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - In the six months since Saudi activists renewed calls to defy the kingdom's ban on female drivers, small numbers of women have gotten behind the wheel almost daily in what has become the country's longest such campaign.

Organizers are calling on more women to join in on Saturday, when President Barack Obama visits Riyadh.

The activists say their long-term goal is not just to win Saudi females the freedom to drive, but to clear a path for broader democratic reforms.

Since Oct. 26, the first day of the renewed campaign, more than 100 women have gotten behind the wheel, said Eman al-Nafjan, an organizer.

So far, the government appears unwilling to launch a crackdown.

While it is still uncommon to see women driving in Saudi Arabia, they have been sending videos and photos of themselves behind the wheel to the campaign's organizers, who then upload the footage to YouTube almost daily.

"It's very hard to strategize in a place where political activism has no history," al-Nafjan said. "So our strategy is to keep marching on and to see if people join or not."

Naseema al-Sada has driven in the eastern region of Qatif. She said public attitudes have changed in the past six months, as evidenced by the way the campaign is openly talked about in the Saudi media.

"Women's rights are no longer a taboo subject," she said.

In an opinion piece this week published by the Saudi-based Arab News website, columnist Sabria Jawhar wrote that Saudi society either accepts or is indifferent to women getting behind the wheel now.

"If Oct. 26 has taught us anything, the driving ban is a government position. I have said many times in this column that I and most of the women I know want the right to drive whether we actually get behind the wheel or not," she wrote.

Activists say allowing women to drive will have a domino effect for civil rights in Saudi Arabia, where a strict interpretation of Islam known as Wahhabism is effectively the law of the land. Women must get permission from a male relative - usually a husband or father, but lacking those, a brother or son - to travel, get married, enroll in higher education or undergo certain surgical procedures.

"And this is what scares people: That women will be out of the total control of men," al-Sada said.

Though there is no law on the books that explicitly bars women from driving, the Interior Ministry, which oversees the traffic police in Saudi Arabia, will not issue driver's licenses to women.

So far, the ministry has warned that violators will be dealt with firmly.

Police have also privately told the campaigners not to speak to the media, warned them not to drive and followed some around for days.

Women caught driving have been forced to sign pledges not to do it again. If they are caught again, they are pressured to sign another pledge. A male relative is called to pick them up from a police station or on the side of the road. The men are then made to sign pledges they will not let the women drive.

In one case, a woman's car was confiscated and has not been returned to her since January. In another, writer and schoolteacher Tariq al-Mubarak was detained for several days and interrogated when police found out that the mobile phone number used by organizers was registered under his name.

Still, the government response is more muted than in the past. During the first major protest, in 1990, around 50 women drove. They were jailed for a day, had their passports confiscated and lost their jobs. Their male relatives were also barred from traveling for six months.

Then in June 2011, about 40 women got behind the wheel in a protest sparked when a woman was arrested after posting a video of herself driving. One woman was later arrested and sentenced to 10 lashes. The king overturned the sentence.

Madeha al-Ajroush, who was part of the first driving campaign more than two decades ago, said she wants Obama to address human rights while in Saudi Arabia.

"We're not oil; we're also people," al-Ajroush said. "The humanity of Saudi Arabia needs to be looked at seriously."

Source

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#3 [Permalink] Posted on 29th March 2014 08:58

BARACK OBAMA- saviour of Saudi women!!!

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#4 [Permalink] Posted on 29th March 2014 17:47

Quote:

"We're not oil; we're also people," al-Ajroush said. "The humanity of Saudi Arabia needs to be looked at seriously."

Yes we should ask thousands of Indian, Pakistani Bangali Muslims working (slaving away) in your land OR perhaps thousands of maid servants whom you rape, assualt and beat every year. They can easily tell us about your humanity as they experience it everyday!

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#5 [Permalink] Posted on 30th March 2014 08:47

Is this news is from the authentic source..?

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#6 [Permalink] Posted on 30th March 2014 09:47

There is a source to both articles, the first source has not been added due to images of women. If you Google either articles you will easily find many sources. جزاك الله خيرا

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#7 [Permalink] Posted on 30th March 2014 10:34

Obama Ends Overseas Trip With Award for Saudi

MARCH 29, 2014

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - President Obama ended his weeklong trip to Europe and Saudi Arabia on Saturday morning with a brief private ceremony in which he presented an International Women of Courage award to a Saudi woman who works to prevent domestic violence in the kingdom.

(PHOTO: A woman is shaking Obama's hand while holding the award by the other hand.)

The brief event, just hours before Mr. Obama boarded Air Force One to return home, came a day after the president chose not to raise the issue of human rights during a two-hour discussion with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.

The award, which is given by the secretary of state every year, honors women around the world "who have demonstrated exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equality and women's empowerment, often at great personal risk," according to the State Department's website.

Maha Al Muneef, the executive director of the National Family Safety Program, had been selected to receive the award on March 4 but was unable to attend the ceremony in the United States for family health reasons.

"I'm doing this on behalf of Michelle Obama, who normally is the presenter, and I know Dr. Al Muneef is disappointed that it's me instead of Michelle, appropriately so," Mr. Obama said as he presented her the award in a room at the Ritz Carlton hotel where he was staying.

Mr. Obama praised her efforts to raise the issue of women's rights in Saudi Arabia and elevate its importance in the eyes of the monarch.

The president told her that he was "so very, very proud of you and grateful for all the work you're doing here.

"I'm looking forward to seeing you do even more wonderful things in the future," he added.

The president's decision not to discuss human rights or women's rights in his meeting with the king is sure to disappoint activists who have long been critical of the kingdom's treatment of women.

White House officials defended Mr. Obama's decision, saying that the meeting with the king was intended as a way for the two leaders to discuss security issues in the region, including the nuclear negotiations with Iran and the Syrian civil war.

"We'll continue to raise these issues associated with human rights, with reforms here in the kingdom, on a regular basis in all of our interactions with the Saudis," an official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private meeting between Mr. Obama and King Abdullah. "The fact is that given the time they had today and given the need to focus intensively on Iran and Syria in particular, they just didn't get to the full agenda."

Mr. Obama left for the airport a short time after presenting the award. Air Force One departed just before 11 a.m. local time.

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#8 [Permalink] Posted on 9th July 2014 14:57

Nursed by same woman, couple face separation after 8 children

Another Saudi couple has been ordered to separate after more than 35 years of marriage in the wake of claims they had been breastfed by the same woman at infancy, local media said.

A Yemeni woman in her 80s had told a public court in Najran that the man and wife, who have eight children, cannot remain married from the Islamic perspective.

The ruling, however, can be annulled on the basis that the testimony may not be valid since it was given by a woman, a subject of much debate among scholars.

Followers of the Hanafi school of thought rule that such a claim can be proven through the testimony of two men or of one man and two women, while Shafie followers stipulate the testimony of four women for the allegation to prove true.
Maliki followers, meanwhile, only require one man and one woman to provide testimony for the claim to become valid, a source told the paper.

Followers of the Hanbali school of thought, however, stipulate that the woman who is alleged to have breastfed the couple be present herself, a ruling that is commonly accepted by most scholars.

The man involved in the frenzy has called for proof after the woman's account surfaced, feeling it was an ethical issue to remain married if the claim proves true, the source said.

"While both the man and his wife had no idea that they may have been nursed by the same woman at birth, he is still obliged to financially support the kids that resulted from this union," said the source.

He added: "The separation must be officially documented to legal bodies and the ruling be referred to the court of appeal for endorsement or rejection based on evidence and testimonies."

Earlier last month, a court in Al-Rass near Madinah issued a verdict separating a couple after finding out that they had been breastfed by the same woman, local reports say.

The separation order came 25 years after the couple were married and blessed with seven children.

Arabnews

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#9 [Permalink] Posted on 10th July 2014 12:37

Saudi bride files for divorce on wedding night

Quote:

Woman says she doesn't want to go ahead with the wedding after the groom lost 1m Saudi riyals in stock market

Manama: A Saudi bride filed for divorce on her wedding night when her would-be husband received a phone message informing him that he lost all his money in stock markets.

The message that he lost SR1 million ($266,000) meant that the man would be in deep debt and trouble.

The distraught groom shared the information with his wife-to-be who immediately said that she did not want to go ahead with the wedding.

Under the double blow of losing his money and his would-be wife, the groom collapsed and he had to be taken to hospital for urgent treatment, Saudi daily Okaz reported.

The man reportedly also lost his home as fallout of the financial speculations, relatives told the newspaper.

He later said that he developed a strong penchant for stock markets after making good gains in the early stages.

However, he said that was lured by greed and thought that he could make more money quickly, using all the money he had without thinking, even for fleeting minutes, about possible risks.

Divorce rates in Saudi Arabia and the other countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are among the highest in the region, prompting several social and legal experts to press for organising workshops for couples planning to get married, particularly if they are young.

They also called for launching campaigns to promote awareness among people planning to get married about the responsibilities of marriages and starting families.

Gulfnews

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#10 [Permalink] Posted on 10th July 2014 12:46

dr76 wrote:

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May ALLAH SWT help the brother

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#11 [Permalink] Posted on 25th December 2014 19:27

Don't get it? They're allowed to have licence to fly an aircraft but not a allowed to drive a car.

Saudi women drivers in terror trial

Two Saudi women who were detained for defying a ban on female drivers are to be tried in a terrorism court, activists say.

Loujain al-Hathloul, 25, and Maysa al-Amoudi, 33, have been in detention for nearly a month.

The women's cases had reportedly been transferred over comments they had made on social media - rather than for their driving, according to activists.

Saudi Arabia is the world's only country to forbid women from driving.

While it is not technically illegal for women to drive, only men are awarded driving licenses - and women who drive in public risk being fined and arrested by the police.

Saudi woman entering car
Under Saudi rules, women must be consigned to the passenger seat
Saudi women have launched a series of campaigns - including on social media - to demand an easing of the restrictions.

Ms Hathloul was arrested on 1 December after she tried to drive into the kingdom from neighbouring United Arab Emirates, according to the AFP news agency.

Ms Alamoudi, a Saudi journalist based in the UAE, was also arrested when she arrived at the border to support Ms Hathloul, the agency says.

Both women have a large following on Twitter. Ms Hathloul tweeted about her day-long wait at the Saudi border as she tried to enter the country.

On Thursday, a court in Al-Ahsa, in the east of the country, ruled that the women should be tried at a specialised court in Riyadh that was established to deal with terrorism cases.

Activists say lawyers for the women plan to appeal against the transfer.

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#12 [Permalink] Posted on 25th December 2014 21:01

This post has been reported. It could be due to breaking rules or something as simple as bad use of bbcodes which breaks the page format. We will attend to this soon.

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#13 [Permalink] Posted on 5th January 2015 14:11

Saudi woman struggles to save maid’s eyesight

Sunday, January 04, 2015

JEDDAH — A Saudi woman is working hard to get treatment for her Ethiopian maid who lost her eyesight after cleaning detergent splashed in her face. Madinah Abdulqader suffered the injury while cleaning the home of unemployed divorcee Hanan, Al-Watan reported.

Hanan, who suffers from chronic diseases and lives on social insurance, said: “I needed someone to help around in the house so I applied for an Ethiopian maid through the recruitment office.

“Ever since the accident I have not rested as I searched for a way to treat her. I won’t send her back to her country without treatment.”

Hanan said when the accident happened she tried to help her maid but her injury was severe.

She immediately called the Red Crescent, which transported Madinah to a public hospital.

Hanan said: “The police came and investigated the incident. They suspected that it was premeditated but thankfully my innocence was proven.”

Hanan faced a number of challenges when dealing with public hospitals and had a difficult time finding the right treatment for Madinah.

“The first public hospital I took her to refused to accept her, claiming they were full due to the coronavirus outbreak.

“I then took her to another public hospital and they treated her burns but refused to carry out any further analysis to assess the damage to her face.”

Hanan refused to give up and went to yet another public hospital that put Madinah under anesthesia and prohibited any visits.

“I visited her anyways because by then she had lost the sight in her left eye.

“I was shocked to find her in a terrible state. She was completely neglected and flies had gathered around her eye.

“I immediately took her out of that hospital and sought out the Ebsar Foundation, especially as my financial and physical capabilities were very limited.”

The secretary-general of the foundation, Mohammad Towfik Bellow, said his organization’s job was to offer as much help and support as possible to the blind and visually impaired regardless of nationality.

“We have forwarded the Ethiopian maid to the Magrabi Hospital and the medical reports showed that she has lost sight in her left eye completely. “She needs to have several operations that will cost around SR23,000 each.

“She has already had a choroid coat transplant and is scheduled to undergo another one in three months.”

Hanan helped the foundation by paying some of the expenses but the charity is in so much debt it was not able to complete all of the operations Madinah needs.

She said: “I am trying to find a way to get the money. I have no idea if Madinah will ever be able to see again or not but I will support her and stand by her through this hardship.”

Bellow added medical insurance policies in the Kingdom should accommodate citizens on low incomes and domestic employees such as maids and drivers should also be covered. (Saudi Gazette report)

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