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Saudi women
This November 30, 2014 image made from video released by Loujain al-Hathloul, shows her driving towards the United Arab Emirates - Saudi Arabia border before her arrest on December 1, 2014, in Saudi Arabia. (AP Photo/Loujain al-Hathloul, File)
May 19, 2018, 12:55 pm
Saudis detain 7 women’s advocates ahead of driving ban lift
Riyadh accuses the women, who continue to protest restrictive guardianship laws, of 'attempting to undermine the security and stability of the kingdom'
By AFP
Saudi gym owner Halah Alhamrani, 41, trains in her gym centre in the coastal city of Jeddah, February 19, 2018. (AMER HILABI/AFP)
March 20, 2018, 9:30 am
Pulling no punches, Saudi woman boxer breaks exercise taboo
Halah Alhamrani's gym gives local women a space to train in a country where they are restricted from working out in public
By Anuj Chopra
Fatima Salem, right, giggles as Sara Ghouth adjusts her veil, during training sponsored by Ford Motor, in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, March 6, 2018. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
March 7, 2018, 11:32 am
Saudi women take the wheel, test-driving a new freedom
Training programs rush to prepare women for June, when they will be allowed to take to the roads for the first time
By Aya Batrawy
Egyptian singer Tamer Hosny (YouTube screenshot)
March 7, 2018, 4:42 am
‘No dancing’: Saudi concert edict stirs ridicule
Tickets to Egyptian pop star's upcoming performance in the conservative nation warn that even 'swaying' is forbidden
By AFP
Saudi women race in the country's first women-only mass race on March 3, 2018. (Screen capture: Twitter)
March 4, 2018, 6:48 pm
Saudi Arabia hosts first race for women
1,500 runners, many in traditional Islamic attire, take part in 3-kilometer run as part of kingdom's modernization drive
By AFP and TOI staff
Princess Reema bint Bandar al-Saud. (YouTube screenshot)
February 28, 2018, 11:51 pm
Driving not the last of rights for Saudi women, princess vows
Reema bint Bandar al-Saud says Saudi authorities 'really working on' confronting domestic violence
By AFP
This file photo taken on October 20, 2017, shows Saudi women attending the "Short Film Competition 2" festival at King Fahad Culture Center in Riyadh. (AFP PHOTO / FAYEZ NURELDINE)
February 19, 2018, 7:33 am
Saudi women to start own businesses without male permission
Latest easing of restrictions on women continues plan to expand private sector in post-oil era
By AFP
A picture taken on January 19, 2018 shows Saudi women clad in the Abaya robes and men walking during the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rumah, some 160 kilometres east of Riyadh. (AFP PHOTO / FAYEZ NURELDINE)
February 11, 2018, 5:14 am
Saudi women need not wear abaya robes, senior cleric says
Statement marks first such comment from a senior religious figure, but government has not said whether it will change the law on women's dress
By AFP
Female Saudi supporters of Al-Ahli attend their team's soccer match against Al-Batin at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah on January 12, 2018. (AFP Photo/Stringer)
January 12, 2018, 8:29 pm
In first, Saudi women attend soccer match
Female fans arrive hours before game to celebrate end of ban, one of several social restrictions lifted in Islamic kingdom
By AFP
Illustrative image of Saudi women sitting in a stadium in the capital Riyadh for an event commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the kingdom, September 23, 2017. (AFP PHOTO/Fayez Nureldine)
January 12, 2018, 12:57 pm
Saudi women to enter stadiums for first time to watch soccer
As part of sweeping social reforms, Jeddah and Riyadh build 'family sections' for women to attend matches
By AP
Illustrative: A Saudi woman tours a car showroom for women in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on January 11, 2018. (AFP/Amer Hilabi)
January 12, 2018, 8:55 am
First women-only car showroom opens in Saudi Arabia
Five months before women formally permitted to drive in kingdom, private company offers them choice of vehicles
By AFP
Illustrative: A woman wearing a burqa rides a motorcycle in New Delhi, India, on December 12, 2016. (Nati Shohat/Flash90)
December 17, 2017, 8:18 am
Saudi women will be allowed to drive trucks and motorbikes
As part of reform push, kingdom also announces women drivers will not need special license plates
By AFP
This file photo taken on October 20, 2017 shows Saudis attending the "Short Film Competition 2" festival at King Fahad Culture Center in Riyadh. (AFP PHOTO / FAYEZ NURELDINE)
December 13, 2017, 7:00 am
Saudi filmmakers, businessmen eye return of cinemas
After Riyadh announced decades-old ban on movie theaters will be lifted, first venues expected to open early next year
By Alison Tahmizian Meuse
Saudi women attend a short film festival at King Fahd Culture Center in Riyadh on October 20, 2017. (AFP Photo/Fayez Nureldine)
October 30, 2017, 7:32 am
Saudis to open sports stadiums to women in reform push
Announcement implies women in the ultra-conservative kingdom will be allowed to attend sporting events alongside men for the first time
By Anuj Chopra
In this Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2017, file photo released by Saudi Press Agency, SPA, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman speaks at the opening ceremony of Future Investment Initiative Conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.(Saudi Press Agency via AP, File)
October 28, 2017, 4:27 pm
Saudi promise of ‘moderate Islam’ shifts power
Crown prince is pushing changes that could usher in a new era and swing the kingdom away from decades of ultraconservative dogma and restrictions
By Aya Batrawy
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