Featured stories about Saudi Arabia
Stories about Saudi Arabia
25 February 2019
How Saudi leaders are using religion to consolidate power and silence critical voices
''Oppression is a comprehensive system, and [in our country] it is enabled by religion.''
3 December 2018
Netizen Report: Who else is being silenced in Saudi Arabia?
Jamal Khashoggi's murder forces light on other abuses in Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh blocks Skype and China goes after Twitter users.
29 November 2018
Meet the women's rights activists behind bars in Saudi Arabia
On International Women Human Rights Defenders Day, human rights organisations continue to call for the release of jailed Saudi women activists.
16 November 2018
Saudi Arabia's execution of another migrant worker angers Indonesians and strains an already fraught diplomatic relationship
According to the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, about 103 Indonesians were handed death sentences in Saudi Arabia between 2011 and 2018.
31 October 2018
Israa Al-Ghomgham, a Saudi woman facing the death penalty for peaceful protest
Al-Ghomgham, and many other Saudi Shiites, took to the streets in 2011 to demand better rights.
25 October 2018
Arrested in Saudi Arabia, and then disappeared: Yemeni writer Marwan Almuraisy
In the authoritarian kingdom, the crackdown against independent voices has escalated under Mohammed Bin Salman's rule.
6 September 2018
A lethal combination: How MENA governments use cybercrime laws and spyware to target activists
Gulf governments continue to deploy cybercrime laws as an arbitrary legal cover to target target human rights defenders.
24 February 2018
Saudi Arabia, a United Nations Human Rights Council Member, Continues Rights Crackdown
"The General Assembly is supposed to take into account the contribution of candidate States that seek membership to the HRC in the promotion and protection of human rights."
29 September 2017
Saudi Women Activists Win Driving Victory in Shadow of Guardianship System and Wave of Arrests
Saudi women may soon be able to drive. However, they continue to face discriminatory barriers under the kingdom's male guardianship system.
22 September 2017
Saudi Arabia Eases Restrictions on Messaging Apps, But WhatsApp and Viber Are Still Blocked
Since 2013, the Saudi government has partially or fully blocked chat and call applications including WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook Messenger and FaceTime.
24 June 2017
Meet the Saudi Woman Who Ignited a Firestorm When She Got Behind the Wheel
Challenging prohibitions on driving in Saudi Arabia is no easy task.
21 June 2017
As Deadline to Leave Saudi Arabia Nears, Ethiopian Workers Trapped Between Two Bad Choices
"It is horrifying that most Ethiopians have not shown an interest in returning home despite risk of violence."
16 June 2017
Ditching the Egyptian Islands: Between Cash, Legitimacy, and Public Outrage
Going against popular opinion, Sisi is transferring the ownership of two Egyptian Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, and Egyptians are fighting back.
8 June 2017
Netizen Report: Gulf States Say ‘Pro-Qatar’ Speech Now Constitutes Cybercrime
Global Voices Advocacy's Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in Internet rights around the world.
17 April 2017
#SaveDinaAli: Activists Call for Release of Saudi Woman Forcibly Sent Back to the Kingdom
"If I go back to Saudi Arabia, I will be dead. Please help me, I am recording this video to help me and know that I am real and here."
12 March 2017
Indonesians Gleefully Welcome Saudi King, But Activists Are Wary of Riyadh's Influence
"Saudi learns pluralism from Indonesia. We learn Wahhabism from Saudi. We're even," wrote a Twitter user during the visit.
21 February 2017
Unsurprisingly, Saudi Arabia's Politicians and Media Love Trump's Tough Talk on Iran
Some, however, warned that escalating tensions could end badly: "We live in the same region with Iran, any war on Iran means we all going to be devastated".
8 January 2017
Conflict in Yemen Takes Heavy Toll on Country's Children
"Hunger is the most dominant thought on Yemenis minds during this period."
27 December 2016
Saudi Arabia Promises to Stop Using British-Made Cluster Bombs in Yemen
Saudi Arabia has promised to stop using British-made cluster bombs, which are prohibited by the Convention on Cluster Munitions, in its air strikes in Yemen.
22 December 2016
Assaults on Rights Activists Harm Civil Society — And Saudi Arabia's Progress
Saudi Arabia's ongoing crackdown on peaceful activism is depriving activists of their freedom and basic rights -- and it's costing the kingdom the work and creativity of its brightest reformists.
