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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Gulf of Aqaba. It is the only country with both a Red Sea coast and a Persian Gulf coast, and most of its terrain consists of arid desert, lowland and mountains. As of October 2018, the Saudi economy was the largest in the Middle East and the 18th largest in the world. Saudi Arabia also has one of the world's youngest populations: 50 percent of its 33.4 million people are under 25 years old. The territory that now constitutes Saudi Arabia was the site of several ancient cultures and civilizations. The prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest
|
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Saudi Arabia
|
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"Islam"
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
traces of human activity in the world. The world's second-largest religion, Islam, emerged in modern-day Saudi Arabia. In the early 7th century, the Islamic prophet Muhammad united the population of Arabia and created a single Islamic religious polity. Following his death in 632, his followers rapidly expanded the territory under Muslim rule beyond Arabia, conquering huge and unprecedented swathes of territory (from the Iberian Peninsula in the West to modern-day Pakistan in the East) in a matter of decades. Arab dynasties originating from modern-day Saudi Arabia founded the Rashidun (632โ661), Umayyad (661โ750), Abbasid (750โ1517) and Fatimid (909โ1171) caliphates as well
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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as numerous other dynasties in Asia, Africa and Europe. The area of modern-day Saudi Arabia formerly consisted of mainly four distinct regions: Hejaz, Najd and parts of Eastern Arabia (Al-Ahsa) and Southern Arabia ('Asir). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by Ibn Saud. He united the four regions into a single state through a series of conquests beginning in 1902 with the capture of Riyadh, the ancestral home of his family, the House of Saud. Saudi Arabia has since been a totalitarian absolute monarchy, effectively a hereditary dictatorship governed along Islamist lines. The ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
within Sunni Islam has been called "the predominant feature of Saudi culture", with its global spread largely financed by the oil and gas trade. Saudi Arabia is sometimes called "the Land of the Two Holy Mosques" in reference to Al-Masjid al-Haram (in Mecca) and Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (in Medina), the two holiest places in Islam. The state's official language is Arabic. Petroleum was discovered on 3 March 1938 and followed up by several other finds in the Eastern Province. Saudi Arabia has since become the world's second largest oil producer (behind the US) and the world's largest oil exporter, controlling the
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
world's second largest oil reserves and the sixth largest gas reserves. The kingdom is categorized as a World Bank high-income economy with a high Human Development Index and is the only Arab country to be part of the G-20 major economies. The state has attracted criticism for a variety of reasons including: its treatment of women, its excessive and often extrajudicial use of capital punishment, state-sponsored discrimination against religious minorities and atheists, its role in the Yemeni Civil War, sponsorship of Islamic terrorism, its failure to take adequate measures against human trafficking, state-sanctioned racism and antisemitism, its poor human rights
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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record, and its strict interpretation of Sharia law. The kingdom has the world's fifth-highest military expenditure and, according to SIPRI, was the world's second largest arms importer from 2010 to 2014. Saudi Arabia is considered a regional and middle power. In addition to the GCC, it is an active member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and OPEC. Etymology Following the amalgamation of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd, the new state was named al-Mamlakah al-สฟArabฤซyah as-Saสฟลซdฤซyah (a transliteration of in Arabic) by royal decree on 23 September 1932 by its founder, Abdulaziz bin Saud. Although this is normally translated
|
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"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
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Saudi Arabia
|
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"Arabic"
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"Saudi Arabia",
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
as "the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia" in English, it literally means "the Saudi Arab kingdom", or "the Arab Saudi Kingdom". The word "Saudi" is derived from the element as-Saสฟลซdฤซyah in the Arabic name of the country, which is a type of adjective known as a nisba, formed from the dynastic name of the Saudi royal family, the Al Saud (). Its inclusion expresses the view that the country is the personal possession of the royal family. Al Saud is an Arabic name formed by adding the word Al, meaning "family of" or "House of", to the personal name of an
|
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"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
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"sa"
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Saudi Arabia
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"Saudi Arabia",
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"Arabian Peninsula"
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
ancestor. In the case of the Al Saud, this is Saud ibn Muhammad ibn Muqrin, the father of the dynasty's 18th-century founder, Muhammad bin Saud. History Prehistory There is evidence that human habitation in the Arabian Peninsula dates back to about 125,000 years ago. A 2011 study found that the first modern humans to spread east across Asia left Africa about 75,000 years ago across the Bab-el-Mandeb connecting the Horn of Africa and Arabia. The Arabian peninsula is regarded as a central figure in the understanding of hominin evolution and dispersals. Arabia underwent an extreme environmental fluctuation in the Quaternary
|
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Saudi Arabia
|
[
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"Saudi Arabia",
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"Bahrain"
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
that Tarout Island was the main port and the capital of Dilmun. Mesopotamian inscribed clay tablets suggests that, in the early period of Dilmun, a form of hierarchical organized political structure existed. In 1966 an earthworks in Tarout exposed ancient burial field that yielded a large impressive statue dating to the Dilmunite period (mid 3rd millennium BC). The statue was locally made under strong Mesopotamian influence on the artistic principle of Dilmun. By 2200 BC, the centre of Dilmun shifted for unknown reasons from Tarout and the Saudi Arabian mainland to the island of Bahrain, and a major developed settlements
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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appeared in Bahrain for the first time, where a laborious temple complex and thousands of burial mounds that dates to this period were discovered. By the Late Bronze Age, a historically recorded people and land (Median and the Medianites) in the north-western portion of Saudi Arabia are well-documented in the Bible. Centered in Tabouk, Median stretched from Wadi Arabah in the north to the area of al-Wejh in the south. The capital of Median was Qurayyah, it consists of a large fortified citadel encompassing 35 hectares and below it lies a walled settlement of 15 hectares. The city hosted as
|
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Saudi Arabia
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"located in or next to body of water",
"Gulf of Aqaba"
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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wider domain that marked the pinnacle of Lihyan civilization. The third state occurred during the early 3rd century BC with bursting economic activity between the south and north that made Lihyan acquire large influence suitable to its strategic position on the caravan road. Lihyan was a powerful and highly organized ancient Arabian kingdom that played a vital cultural and economic role in the north-western region of the Arabian Peninsula. The Lihyanites ruled over large domain from Yathrib in the south and parts of the Levant in the north. In antiquity, Gulf of Aqaba used to be called Gulf of Lihyan.
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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A testimony to the extensive influence that Lihyan acquired. The Lihyanites fell into the hands of the Nabataeans around 65 BC upon their seizure of Hegra then marching to Tayma, and to their capital Dedan in 9 BC. The Nabataeans ruled large portions of north Arabia until their domain was annexed by the Roman Empire. Middle Ages and rise of Islam Shortly before the advent of Islam, apart from urban trading settlements (such as Mecca and Medina), much of what was to become Saudi Arabia was populated by nomadic pastoral tribal societies. The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born in Mecca
|
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"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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in about 571 CE. In the early 7th century, Muhammad united the various tribes of the peninsula and created a single Islamic religious polity. Following his death in 632, his followers rapidly expanded the territory under Muslim rule beyond Arabia, conquering huge and unprecedented swathes of territory (from the Iberian Peninsula in west to modern day Pakistan in east) in a matter of decades. Arabia soon became a more politically peripheral region of the Muslim world as the focus shifted to the vast and newly conquered lands. Arabs originating from modern-day Saudi Arabia, the Hejaz in particular, founded the Rashidun
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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(632โ661), Umayyad (661โ750), Abbasid (750โ1517) and the Fatimid (909โ1171) caliphates. From the 10th century to the early 20th century, Mecca and Medina were under the control of a local Arab ruler known as the Sharif of Mecca, but at most times the Sharif owed allegiance to the ruler of one of the major Islamic empires based in Baghdad, Cairo or Istanbul. Most of the remainder of what became Saudi Arabia reverted to traditional tribal rule. For much of the 10th century, the Isma'ili-Shi'ite Qarmatians were the most powerful force in the Persian Gulf. In 930, the Qarmatians pillaged Mecca, outraging
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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the Muslim world, particularly with their theft of the Black Stone. In 1077โ1078, an Arab Sheikh named Abdullah bin Ali Al Uyuni defeated the Qarmatians in Bahrain and al-Hasa with the help of the Great Seljuq Empire and founded the Uyunid dynasty. The Uyunid Emirate later underwent expansion with its territory stretching from Najd to the Syrian desert. They were overthrown by the Usfurids in 1253. Ufsurid rule was weakened after Persian rulers of Hormuz captured Bahrain and Qatif in 1320. The vassals of Ormuz, the Shia Jarwanid dynasty came to rule eastern Arabia in the 14th century. The Jabrids
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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took control of the region after overthrowing the Jarwanids in the 15th century and clashed with Hormuz for more than two decades over the region for its economic revenues, until finally agreeing to pay tribute in 1507. Al-Muntafiq tribe later took over the region and came under Ottoman suzerainty. The Bani Khalid tribe later revolted against them in 17th century and took control. Their rule extended from Iraq to Oman at its height and they too came under Ottoman suzerainty. Ottoman Hejaz In the 16th century, the Ottomans added the Red Sea and Persian Gulf coast (the Hejaz, Asir and
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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Al-Ahsa) to the Empire and claimed suzerainty over the interior. One reason was to thwart Portuguese attempts to attack the Red Sea (hence the Hejaz) and the Indian Ocean. Ottoman degree of control over these lands varied over the next four centuries with the fluctuating strength or weakness of the Empire's central authority. These changes contributed to later uncertainties, such as the dispute with Transjordan over the inclusion of the sanjak of Ma'an, including the cities of Ma'an and Aqaba. Foundation of the Saud dynasty The emergence of what was to become the Saudi royal family, known as the Al
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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Saud, began in Nejd in central Arabia in 1744, when Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the dynasty, joined forces with the religious leader Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, founder of the Wahhabi movement, a strict puritanical form of Sunni Islam. This alliance formed in the 18th century provided the ideological impetus to Saudi expansion and remains the basis of Saudi Arabian dynastic rule today. The first "Saudi state" established in 1744 in the area around Riyadh, rapidly expanded and briefly controlled most of the present-day territory of Saudi Arabia, sacking Karbala in 1802 and capturing Mecca in 1803, but was destroyed
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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by 1818 by the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt, Mohammed Ali Pasha. A much smaller second "Saudi state", located mainly in Nejd, was established in 1824. Throughout the rest of the 19th century, the Al Saud contested control of the interior of what was to become Saudi Arabia with another Arabian ruling family, the Al Rashid, who ruled the Emirate of Jabal Shammar. By 1891, the Al Rashid were victorious and the Al Saud were driven into exile in Kuwait. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Ottoman Empire continued to control or have a suzerainty over most of the
|
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Saudi Arabia
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[
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"Riyadh"
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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peninsula. Subject to this suzerainty, Arabia was ruled by a patchwork of tribal rulers, with the Sharif of Mecca having pre-eminence and ruling the Hejaz. In 1902, Abdul Rahman's son, Abdul Azizโlater to be known as Ibn Saudโrecaptured control of Riyadh bringing the Al Saud back to Nejd, creating the third "Saudi state". Ibn Saud gained the support of the Ikhwan, a tribal army inspired by Wahhabism and led by Faisal Al-Dawish, and which had grown quickly after its foundation in 1912. With the aid of the Ikhwan, Ibn Saud captured Al-Ahsa from the Ottomans in 1913. In 1916, with
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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Sultan of Nejd in 1921. With the help of the Ikhwan, the Kingdom of Hejaz was conquered in 1924โ25 and on 10 January 1926, Ibn Saud declared himself King of Hejaz. A year later, he added the title of King of Nejd. For the next five years, he administered the two parts of his dual kingdom as separate units. After the conquest of the Hejaz, the Ikhwan leadership's objective switched to expansion of the Wahhabist realm into the British protectorates of Transjordan, Iraq and Kuwait, and began raiding those territories. This met with Ibn Saud's opposition, as he recognized the
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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danger of a direct conflict with the British. At the same time, the Ikhwan became disenchanted with Ibn Saud's domestic policies which appeared to favor modernization and the increase in the number of non-Muslim foreigners in the country. As a result, they turned against Ibn Saud and, after a two-year struggle, were defeated in 1929 at the Battle of Sabilla, where their leaders were massacred. On 23 September 1932, the two kingdoms of the Hejaz and Nejd were united as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and that date is now a national holiday called Saudi National Day. Post-unification The new
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
|
kingdom was reliant on limited agriculture and pilgrimage revenues. In 1938, vast reserves of oil were discovered in the Al-Ahsa region along the coast of the Persian Gulf, and full-scale development of the oil fields began in 1941 under the US-controlled Aramco (Arabian American Oil Company). Oil provided Saudi Arabia with economic prosperity and substantial political leverage internationally. Cultural life rapidly developed, primarily in the Hejaz, which was the center for newspapers and radio. However, the large influx of foreign workers in Saudi Arabia in the oil industry increased the pre-existing propensity for xenophobia.At the same time, the government became
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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increasingly wasteful and extravagant. By the 1950s this had led to large governmental deficits and excessive foreign borrowing. In 1953, Saud of Saudi Arabia succeeded as the king of Saudi Arabia, on his father's death, until 1964 when he was deposed in favor of his half brother Faisal of Saudi Arabia, after an intense rivalry, fueled by doubts in the royal family over Saud's competence. In 1972, Saudi Arabia gained a 20 percent control in Aramco, thereby decreasing US control over Saudi oil. In 1973, Saudi Arabia led an oil boycott against the Western countries that supported Israel in the
|
[
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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Yom Kippur War against Egypt and Syria. Oil prices quadrupled. In 1975, Faisal was assassinated by his nephew, Prince Faisal bin Musaid and was succeeded by his half-brother King Khalid. By 1976, Saudi Arabia had become the largest oil producer in the world. Khalid's reign saw economic and social development progress at an extremely rapid rate, transforming the infrastructure and educational system of the country; in foreign policy, close ties with the US were developed. In 1979, two events occurred which greatly concerned the government, and had a long-term influence on Saudi foreign and domestic policy. The first was the
|
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"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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Iranian Islamic Revolution. It was feared that the country's Shi'ite minority in the Eastern Province (which is also the location of the oil fields) might rebel under the influence of their Iranian co-religionists. There were several anti-government uprisings in the region such as the 1979 Qatif Uprising. The second event was the Grand Mosque Seizure in Mecca by Islamist extremists. The militants involved were in part angered by what they considered to be the corruption and un-Islamic nature of the Saudi government. The government regained control of the mosque after 10 days and those captured were executed. Part of the
|
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"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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response of the royal family was to enforce a much stricter observance of traditional religious and social norms in the country (for example, the closure of cinemas) and to give the Ulema a greater role in government. Neither entirely succeeded as Islamism continued to grow in strength. In 1980, Saudi Arabia bought out the American interests in Aramco. King Khalid died of a heart attack in June 1982. He was succeeded by his brother, King Fahd, who added the title "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques" to his name in 1986 in response to considerable fundamentalist pressure to avoid use
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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of "majesty" in association with anything except God. Fahd continued to develop close relations with the United States and increased the purchase of American and British military equipment. The vast wealth generated by oil revenues was beginning to have an even greater impact on Saudi society. It led to rapid technological (but not cultural) modernisation, urbanization, mass public education and the creation of new media. This and the presence of increasingly large numbers of foreign workers greatly affected traditional Saudi norms and values. Although there was dramatic change in the social and economic life of the country, political power continued
|
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Saudi Arabia
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sovereign state in Western Asia
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to be monopolized by the royal family leading to discontent among many Saudis who began to look for wider participation in government. In the 1980s, Saudi Arabia spent $25 billion in support of Saddam Hussein in the IranโIraq War. However, Saudi Arabia condemned the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and asked the US to intervene. King Fahd allowed American and coalition troops to be stationed in Saudi Arabia. He invited the Kuwaiti government and many of its citizens to stay in Saudi Arabia, but expelled citizens of Yemen and Jordan because of their governments' support of Iraq. In 1991,
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"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Kuwait"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Iraq"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Kuwait"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Iraq"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Saudi Arabian forces were involved both in bombing raids on Iraq and in the land invasion that helped to liberate Kuwait. Saudi Arabia's relations with the West began to cause growing concern among some of the ulema and students of sharia law and was one of the issues that led to an increase in Islamist terrorism in Saudi Arabia, as well as Islamist terrorist attacks in Western countries by Saudi nationals. Osama bin Laden was a Saudi citizen (until stripped of his citizenship in 1994) and was responsible for the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in East Africa and the 2000
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"participant in",
"September 11 attacks"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
USS Cole bombing near the port of Aden, Yemen. 15 of the 19 terrorists involved in September 11 attacks in New York City, Washington, D.C., and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania were Saudi nationals. Many Saudis who did not support the Islamist terrorists were nevertheless deeply unhappy with the government's policies. Islamism was not the only source of hostility to the government. Although now extremely wealthy, Saudi Arabia's economy was near stagnant. High taxes and a growth in unemployment have contributed to discontent, and has been reflected in a rise in civil unrest, and discontent with the royal family. In response, a
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Fahd suffered a debilitating stroke, and the Crown Prince, Abdullah, assumed the role of de facto regent, taking on the day-to-day running of the country. However, his authority was hindered by conflict with Fahd's full brothers (known, with Fahd, as the "Sudairi Seven"). From the 1990s, signs of discontent continued and included, in 2003 and 2004, a series of bombings and armed violence in Riyadh, Jeddah, Yanbu and Khobar. In FebruaryโApril 2005, the first-ever nationwide municipal elections were held in Saudi Arabia. Women were not allowed to take part in the poll. In 2005, King Fahd died and was succeeded
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
by Abdullah, who continued the policy of minimum reform and clamping down on protests. The king introduced a number of economic reforms aimed at reducing the country's reliance on oil revenue: limited deregulation, encouragement of foreign investment, and privatization. In February 2009, Abdullah announced a series of governmental changes to the judiciary, armed forces, and various ministries to modernize these institutions including the replacement of senior appointees in the judiciary and the Mutaween (religious police) with more moderate individuals and the appointment of the country's first female deputy minister. On 29 January 2011, hundreds of protesters gathered in the city
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
same year, King Abdullah announced a package of $93 billion, which included 500,000 new homes to a cost of $67 billion, in addition to creating 60,000 new security jobs. Although male-only municipal elections were held on 29 September 2011, Abdullah allowed women to vote and be elected in the 2015 municipal elections, and also to be nominated to the Shura Council. Since 2001, Saudi Arabia has engaged in widespread internet censorship. Most online censorship generally falls into two categories: one based on censoring "immoral" (mostly pornographic and LGBT-supportive websites along with websites promoting any religious ideology other than Sunni Islam)
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"basic form of government",
"Absolute monarchy"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
and one based on a blacklist run by Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Media, which primarily censors websites critical of the Saudi regime or associated with parties that are opposed to or opposed by Saudi Arabia. Politics Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy. However, according to the Basic Law of Saudi Arabia adopted by royal decree in 1992, the king must comply with Sharia (Islamic law) and the Quran, while the Quran and the Sunnah (the traditions of Muhammad) are declared to be the country's constitution. No political parties or national elections are permitted. Critics regard it as a totalitarian dictatorship.
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
recent years there have been limited steps to widen political participation such as the establishment of the Consultative Council in the early 1990s and the National Dialogue Forum in 2003. The rule of the Al Saud faces political opposition from four sources: Sunni Islamist activism; liberal critics; the Shi'ite minorityโparticularly in the Eastern Province; and long-standing tribal and regionalist particularistic opponents (for example in the Hejaz). Of these, the minority activists have been the most prominent threat to the government and have in recent years perpetrated a number of violent incidents in the country. However, open protest against the government,
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"executive body",
"Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
even if peaceful, is not tolerated. Monarchy and royal family The king combines legislative, executive, and judicial functions and royal decrees form the basis of the country's legislation. The king is also the prime minister, and presides over the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia and Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia. The royal family dominates the political system. The family's vast numbers allow it to control most of the kingdom's important posts and to have an involvement and presence at all levels of government. The number of princes is estimated to be at least 7,000, with most power and influence
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"contains administrative territorial entity",
"Riyadh Province"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
to his death in 2012, Prince Saud who had been Minister of Foreign Affairs since 1975 and current King Salman, who was Minister of Defense and Aviation before he was crown prince and Governor of the Riyadh Province from 1962 to 2011. The current Minister of Defense is Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the son of King Salman and Crown Prince. The royal family is politically divided by factions based on clan loyalties, personal ambitions and ideological differences. The most powerful clan faction is known as the 'Sudairi Seven', comprising the late King Fahd and his full brothers and their descendants.
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Ideological divisions include issues over the speed and direction of reform, and whether the role of the ulema should be increased or reduced. There were divisions within the family over who should succeed to the throne after the accession or earlier death of Prince Sultan. When prince Sultan died before ascending to the throne on 21 October 2011, King Abdullah appointed Prince Nayef as crown prince. The following year Prince Nayef also died before ascending to the throne. The Saudi government and the royal family have often, over many years, been accused of corruption. In a country that is said
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
business in the country. The enforcement of the anti-corruption laws is selective and public officials engage in corruption with impunity. A number of prominent Saudi Arabian princes, government ministers, and businesspeople, including Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, were arrested in Saudi Arabia in November 2017. There has been mounting pressure to reform and modernize the royal family's rule, an agenda championed by King Abdullah both before and after his accession in 2005. The creation of the Consultative Council in the early 1990s did not satisfy demands for political participation, and, in 2003, an annual National Dialogue Forum was announced that would
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
government. The preferred ulema are of the Salafi persuasion. The ulema have also been a key influence in major government decisions, for example the imposition of the oil embargo in 1973 and the invitation to foreign troops to Saudi Arabia in 1990. In addition, they have had a major role in the judicial and education systems and a monopoly of authority in the sphere of religious and social morals. By the 1970s, as a result of oil wealth and the modernization of the country initiated by King Faisal, important changes to Saudi society were under way and the power of
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
by the Al ash-Sheikh, the country's leading religious family. The Al ash-Sheikh are the descendants of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the 18th-century founder of the Wahhabi form of Sunni Islam which is today dominant in Saudi Arabia. The family is second in prestige only to the Al Saud (the royal family) with whom they formed a "mutual support pact" and power-sharing arrangement nearly 300 years ago. The pact, which persists to this day, is based on the Al Saud maintaining the Al ash-Sheikh's authority in religious matters and upholding and propagating Wahhabi doctrine. In return, the Al ash-Sheikh support the
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
form part of the ulema, the country's Islamic scholars. Royal decrees are the other main source of law; but are referred to as regulations rather than laws because they are subordinate to the Sharia. Royal decrees supplement Sharia in areas such as labor, commercial and corporate law. Additionally, traditional tribal law and custom remain significant. Extra-Sharia government tribunals usually handle disputes relating to specific royal decrees. Final appeal from both Sharia courts and government tribunals is to the King and all courts and tribunals follow Sharia rules of evidence and procedure. The Saudi system of justice has been criticized for
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
to be replaced by imprisonment or fines. Atheism or "calling into question the fundamentals of the Islamic religion on which this country is based" is considered a terrorist crime. Lashings are a common form of punishment and are often imposed for offences against religion and public morality such as drinking alcohol and neglect of prayer and fasting obligations. Retaliatory punishments, or Qisas, are practised: for instance, an eye can be surgically removed at the insistence of a victim who lost his own eye. Families of someone unlawfully killed can choose between demanding the death penalty or granting clemency in return
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Arab League"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Gulf Cooperation Council"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
for a payment of diyya (blood money), by the perpetrator. Even after allowing women to drive and work, public places in Saudi Arabia are still gender-segregated and the kingdom has very strict laws on how unrelated men and women can dine together. In September 2018, a man was arrested by the Saudi authorities for appearing in a video with his female colleague while having breakfast at a hotel, where they both work. Foreign relations Saudi Arabia joined the UN in 1945 and is a founding member of the Arab League, Gulf Cooperation Council, Muslim World League, and the Organization of
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Arab League"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"World Trade Organization"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Organisation of Islamic Cooperation"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"OPEC"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
the Islamic Conference (now the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation). It plays a prominent role in the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and in 2005 joined the World Trade Organization. Saudi Arabia supports the intended formation of the Arab Customs Union in 2015 and an Arab common market by 2020, as announced at the 2009 Arab League summit. Since 1960, as a founding member of OPEC, its oil pricing policy has been generally to stabilize the world oil market and try to moderate sharp price movements so as to not jeopardise the Western economies. In 1973, Saudi Arabia and
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Japan"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United Kingdom"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
other Arab nations imposed an oil embargo against the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and other Western nations which supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War of October 1973. The embargo caused an oil crisis with many short- and long-term effects on global politics and the global economy. Between the mid-1970s and 2002 Saudi Arabia expended over $70 billion in "overseas development aid". However, there is evidence that the vast majority was, in fact, spent on propagating and extending the influence of Wahhabism at the expense of other forms of Islam. There has been an intense debate over whether Saudi
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
aid and Wahhabism has fomented extremism in recipient countries. The two main allegations are that, by its nature, Wahhabism encourages intolerance and promotes terrorism. Counting only the non-Muslim-majority countries, Saudi Arabia has paid for the construction of 1359 mosques, 210 Islamic centres, 202 colleges and 2000 schools. Saudi Arabia and the United States are strategic allies, and since President Barack Obama took office in 2009, the US has sold $110 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia. However, the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States became strained and have witnessed major decline during the last years of the Obama
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
administration, although Obama had authorized US forces to provide logistical and intelligence support to the Saudis in their military intervention in Yemen, establishing a joint coordination planning cell with the Saudi military that is helping manage the war, and CIA used Saudi bases for drone assassinations in Yemen. In the first decade of the 21st century the Saudi Arabia paid approximately $100 million to American firms to lobby the U.S. government. On May 20, 2017, President Donald Trump and King Salman signed a series of letters of intent for Saudi Arabia to purchase arms from the United States totaling US$110
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Persian Gulf"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"China"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Iraq"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"participant in",
"Gulf War"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Iraq"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
billion immediately, and $350 billion over 10 years. In the Arab and Muslim worlds, Saudi Arabia is considered to be pro-Western and pro-American, and it is certainly a long-term ally of the United States. However, this and Saudi Arabia's role in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, particularly the stationing of US troops on Saudi soil from 1991, prompted the development of a hostile Islamist response internally. As a result, Saudi Arabia has, to some extent, distanced itself from the US and, for example, refused to support or to participate in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. China and Saudi
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"China"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Arabia are major allies, with relationship between the two countries growing significantly in recent decades. Majority of Saudi Arabians also expressed a favorable view of China. In February 2019, Crown Prince Mohammad defended China's Xinjiang re-education camps for Uyghur Muslims, saying "China has the right to carry out anti-terrorism and de-extremisation work for its national security." In July 2019, UN ambassadors of 37 countries, including Saudi Arabia, have signed a joint letter to the UNHRC defending China's treatment of Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang region. The consequences of the 2003 invasion and the Arab Spring led
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Iran"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Jordan"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
to increasing alarm within the Saudi monarchy over the rise of Iran's influence in the region. These fears were reflected in comments of King Abdullah, who privately urged the United States to attack Iran and "cut off the head of the snake". The tentative rapprochement between the US and Iran that began in secret in 2011 was said to be feared by the Saudis, and, during the run up to the widely welcomed deal on Iran's nuclear programme that capped the first stage of USโIranian dรฉtente, Robert Jordan, who was US ambassador to Riyadh from 2001 to 2003, said "[t]he
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Bahrain"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Iran"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Bahrain"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Saudis' worst nightmare would be the [Obama] administration striking a grand bargain with Iran." A trip to Saudi by US President Barack Obama in 2014 included discussions of USโIran relations, though these failed to resolve Riyadh's concerns. In order to protect the house of Khalifa, the monarchs of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia invaded Bahrain by sending military troops to quell the uprising of Bahraini people on 14 March 2011. The Saudi government considered the two-month uprising as a "security threat" posed by the Shia who represent the majority of Bahrain population. On 25 March 2015, Saudi Arabia, spearheading a coalition of
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Turkey"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Sunni Muslim states, started a military intervention in Yemen against the Shia Houthis and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was deposed in the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. At least 56,000 people have been killed in armed violence in Yemen between January 2016 and October 2018. Saudi Arabia, together with Qatar and Turkey, openly supported the Army of Conquest, an umbrella group of anti-government forces fighting in the Syrian Civil War that reportedly included an al-Qaeda linked al-Nusra Front and another Salafi coalition known as Ahrar al-Sham. Saudi Arabia was also involved in the CIA-led Timber Sycamore
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Sweden"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Arab League"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
covert operation to train and arm Syrian rebels. Following a number of incidents during the Hajj season, the deadliest of which killed at least 2,070 pilgrim in 2015 Mina stampede, Saudi Arabia has been accused of mismanagement and focusing on increasing money revenues while neglecting pilgrims' welfare. In March 2015, Sweden scrapped an arms deal with Saudi Arabia, marking an end to a decade-old defense agreement with the kingdom. The decision came after Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom was blocked by the Saudis while speaking about democracy and women's rights at the Arab League in Cairo. This also led to
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Sweden"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Tunisia"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Egypt"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Saudi Arabia recalling its ambassador to Sweden. Saudi Arabia has been seen as a moderating influence in the ArabโIsraeli conflict, periodically putting forward a peace plan between Israel and the Palestinians and condemning Hezbollah. Following the Arab Spring Saudi Arabia offered asylum to deposed President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and King Abdullah telephoned President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt (prior to his deposition) to offer his support. In early 2014 relations with Qatar became strained over its support for the Muslim Brotherhood, and Saudi Arabia's belief that Qatar was interfering in its affairs. In August 2014 both countries
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Canada"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Iran"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Qatar"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
appeared to be exploring ways of ending the rift. Saudi Arabia and its allies have criticized Qatar-based TV channel Al Jazeera and Qatar's relations with Iran. In 2017, Saudi Arabia imposed a land, naval and air blockade on Qatar. Saudi Arabia halted new trade and investment dealings with Canada and suspended diplomatic ties in a dramatic escalation of a dispute over the kingdomโs arrest of women's rights activist Samar Badawi on 6 August 2018. Tensions have escalated between Saudi Arabia and its allies after the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi from the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Turkish officials are highly skeptical
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Turkey"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
of Khashoggi being murdered inside the consulate; this has strained the already suffering Saudi ArabiaโTurkey relations. As stated by Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, director of the German Marshall Fundโs Ankara office "Turkey is maintaining a very delicate balance in its relations with Saudi Arabia. The relations have the potential of evolving into a crisis at any moment." The pressure on Saudi to reveal the insights about Khashoggiโs disappearance from the US and other European countries has increased. Saudi-US relations took an ugly turn on 14 October 2018, when Trump promised "severe punishment" if the royal court was responsible for Khashoggisโ death. The
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Germany"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"France"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Saudi Foreign Ministry retaliated with an equal statement saying, "it will respond with greater action," indicating the kingdomโs "influential and vital role in the global economy." A joint statement was issued by Britain, France and Germany also demanding a "credible investigation to establish the truth about what happened, and โ if relevant โ to identify those bearing responsibility for the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, and ensure that they are held to account." The US expects its Gulf allies involved in the coalition in Yemen to put in more efforts and address the rising concerns about the millions that have been
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"United Nations"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located on terrain feature",
"Arabian Peninsula"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
pushed to the brink of famine. According to the United Nations, the Arabian peninsula nation is home to the worldโs worst humanitarian crisis. More than 50,000 children in Yemen died from starvation in 2017. The famine in Yemen is the direct result of the Saudi-led intervention and blockade of the rebel-held area. In the wake of Jamal Khashoggi's murder in October 2018, the US secretary of state Mike Pompeo and the US defence secretary Jim Mattis have called for a ceasefire in Yemen within 30 days followed by UN-initiated peace talks. Pompeo has asked Saudi Arabia and the UAE to
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
stop their airstrikes on populated areas in Yemen. Theresa May backed the US call to end the coalition. President of the International Rescue Committee David Miliband called the US announcement as "the most significant breakthrough in the war in Yemen for four years". Jeremy Hunt, the UK Foreign Secretary, on his visit to Saudi Arabia and the UAE on 12 November 2018, is expected to raise the need for a ceasefire from all sides in the four-year long Yemen civil war. The US called for a ceasefire within 30 days. Andrew Smith, of Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), said that
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Syria"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Hunt and Boris Johnson "played an utterly central and complicit role in arming and supporting the Saudi-led destruction of Yemen." Allegations of sponsoring global terrorism According to the Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki in March 2014, Saudi Arabia along with Qatar provided political, financial and media support to terrorists against the Iraqi government. Similarly, President of Syria Bashar al-Assad noted that the sources of the extreme ideology of terrorist organization Islamic State and al-Qaeda affiliate groups are the Wahabbism that has been supported by the royal family of Saudi Arabia. The relations with the U.S. became strained following 9/11 terror
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Qatar"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Qatar"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
attacks. American politicians and media accused the Saudi government of supporting terrorism and tolerating a jihadist culture. Indeed, Osama bin Laden and 15 out of the 19 9/11 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia; in ISIL-occupied Raqqa, in mid-2014, all 12 judges were Saudi. The leaked US Department of State memo, dated 17 August 2014, says that "governments of Qatar and Saudi Arabia...are providing clandestine financial and logistic support to ISIS and other radical groups in the region." According to former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, "Saudi Arabia remains a critical financial support base for al-Qaida, the Taliban, LeT and
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"participant in",
"September 11 attacks"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Act that would allow relatives of victims of the September 11 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia for its government's alleged role in the attacks. Congress overwhelmingly rejected President Barack Obama's veto. According to Sir William Patey, former British ambassador to Saudi Arabia, the kingdom funds mosques throughout Europe that have become hotbeds of extremism. "They are not funding terrorism. They are funding something else, which may down the road lead to individuals being radicalised and becoming fodder for terrorism," Patey said. He said that Saudi has been funding an ideology that leads to extremism and the leaders of the kingdom
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Pakistan"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
SANG had 75,000 active soldiers and 25,000 tribal levies. In addition, there is an Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah military intelligence service. The kingdom has a long-standing military relationship with Pakistan, it has long been speculated that Saudi Arabia secretly funded Pakistan's atomic bomb programme and seeks to purchase atomic weapons from Pakistan, in near future. The SANG is not a reserve but a fully operational front-line force, and originated out of Ibn Saud's tribal military-religious force, the Ikhwan. Its modern existence, however, is attributable to it being effectively Abdullah's private army since the 1960s and, unlike the rest of the
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"France"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Its modern high-technology arsenal makes Saudi Arabia among the world's most densely armed nations, with its military equipment being supplied primarily by the US, France and Britain. The United States sold more than $80 billion in military hardware between 1951 and 2006 to the Saudi military. On 20 October 2010, the US State Department notified Congress of its intention to make the biggest arms sale in American historyโan estimated $60.5 billion purchase by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The package represents a considerable improvement in the offensive capability of the Saudi armed forces. 2013 saw Saudi military spending climb to
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"France"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Japan"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United Kingdom"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
$67bn, overtaking that of the UK, France and Japan to place fourth globally. The United Kingdom has also been a major supplier of military equipment to Saudi Arabia since 1965. Since 1985, the UK has supplied military aircraftโnotably the Tornado and Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraftโand other equipment as part of the long-term Al-Yamamah arms deal estimated to have been worth ยฃ43 billion by 2006 and thought to be worth a further ยฃ40 billion. In May 2012, British defence giant BAE signed a ยฃ1.9bn ($3bn) deal to supply Hawk trainer jets to Saudi Arabia. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Canada"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"France"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Institute, SIPRI, in 2010โ14 Saudi Arabia became the world's second largest arms importer, receiving four times more major arms than in 2005โ2009. Major imports in 2010โ14 included 45 combat aircraft from the UK, 38 combat helicopters from the US, four tanker aircraft from Spain and over 600 armoured vehicles from Canada. Saudi Arabia has a long list of outstanding orders for arms, including 27 more combat aircraft from the UK, 154 combat aircraft from the US and a large number of armoured vehicles from Canada. Saudi Arabia received 41 percent of UK arms exports in 2010โ14. France authorized $18 billion
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia in 2015 alone. The $15 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia is believed to be the largest arms sale in Canadian history. In 2016, the European Parliament decided to temporarily impose an arms embargo against Saudi Arabia, as a result of the Yemen civilian population's suffering from the conflict with Saudi Arabia. In 2017, Saudi Arabia signed a 110 billion dollar arms deal with the United States. Saudi Arabia is Britainโs largest arms customer, with more than ยฃ4.6 billion worth of arms bought since the start of Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. A recent poll
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Germany"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
conducted by YouGov for Save the Children and Avaaz stated that 63 percent of British people oppose the sale of weapons to Saudi. Following the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a nonbinding resolution was passed in the European Parliament on 25 October 2018, urging EU countries to impose an EU-wide arms embargo on Saudi Arabia. Germany became the first Western government to suspend future arms deal with the kingdom after Angela Merkel stated that "arms exports can't take place in the current circumstances." Human rights Human Rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Freedom House condemn both the
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
record, the Saudi government points to the special Islamic character of the country, and asserts that this justifies a different social and political order. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom had unsuccessfully urged President Barack Obama to raise human rights concerns with King Abdullah on his March 2014 visit to the Kingdom especially the imprisonments of Sultan Hamid Marzooq al-Enezi, Saud Falih Awad al-Enezi, and Raif Badawi. For example, Ali Mohammed Baqir al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 when he was 17 years old for taking part in an anti-government protests in Saudi Arabia during the Arab Spring. In
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
May 2014, Ali al-Nimr was sentenced to be publicly beheaded and crucified. In 2013, the government deported thousands of non-Saudis, many of them who were working illegally in the country or had overstayed their visas. Many reports abound, of foreigner workers being tortured either by employers or others. This resulted in many basic services suffering from a lack of workers, as many Saudi Arabian citizens are not keen on working in blue collar jobs. Saudi Arabia has a "Counter-Radicalization Program" the purpose of which is to "combat the spread and appeal of extremist ideologies among the general populous (sic)" and
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"United Nations"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
to "instill the true values of the Islamic faith, such as tolerance and moderation." This "tolerance and moderation" has been called into question by the Baltimore Sun, based on the reports from Amnesty International regarding Raif Badawi, and in the case of a man from Hafr al-Batin sentenced to death for rejecting Islam. In September 2015, Faisal bin Hassan Trad, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, has been elected Chair of the United Nations Human Rights Council panel that appoints independent experts. In January 2016, Saudi Arabia executed the prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr who had called for
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Turkey"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
pro-democracy demonstrations and for free elections in Saudi Arabia. In August 2017, ten Nobel Peace Prize laureates, including Desmond Tutu and Lech Waลฤsa, urged Saudi Arabia to stop the executions of 14 young people for participating in the 2011โ12 Saudi Arabian protests. On 2 October 2018, Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. According to Turkish government sources there is audio and video evidence for him having been murdered and dismembered inside the consulate. In December 2019, Saudi Arabia organized a big budget electronic dance music festival, MDL Beast
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
to the kingdom, "the regionโs biggest music event". However, it attracted a lot controversy when lots of its high profile attendees, including Armie Hammer, Joan Smalls and Wilmer Valderrama, were criticized for engaging in "image rehab" for the kingdom, overlooking the continued human rights abuses in the country. In April 2020, the Saudi Supreme Court stated under a royal decree by King Salman that minors who commit crimes will no longer face the death sentence, but will be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment in a juvenile detention facility. Geography Saudi Arabia occupies about 80 percent of
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Oman"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United Arab Emirates"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"United Arab Emirates"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Oman"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located on terrain feature",
"Arabian Peninsula"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
the Arabian Peninsula (the world's largest peninsula), lying between latitudes 16ยฐ and 33ยฐ N, and longitudes 34ยฐ and 56ยฐ E. Because the country's southern borders with the United Arab Emirates and Oman are not precisely marked, the exact size of the country is undefined. The CIA World Factbook estimates and lists Saudi Arabia as the world's 13th largest state. It is geographically the largest country in the Arabian Plate. Saudi Arabia's geography is dominated by the Arabian Desert, associated semi-desert and shrubland (see satellite image) and several mountain ranges and highlands. It is, in fact, a number of linked deserts
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Persian Gulf"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Red Sea"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"lowest point",
"Red Sea"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
and includes the Rub' al Khali ("Empty Quarter") in the southeastern part of the country, the world's largest contiguous sand desert. Though there are a few lakes in the country, Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world by area with no permanent rivers. Wadis, however, are very numerous. The fertile areas are to be found in the alluvial deposits in wadis, basins, and oases. The main topographical feature is the central plateau which rises abruptly from the Red Sea and gradually descends into the Nejd and toward the Persian Gulf. On the Red Sea coast, there is a
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
narrow coastal plain, known as the Tihamah parallel to which runs an imposing escarpment. The southwest province of Asir is mountainous, and contains the Mount Sawda, which is the highest point in the country. Except for the southwestern province of Asir, Saudi Arabia has a desert climate with very high day-time temperatures and a sharp temperature drop at night. Average summer temperatures are around , but can be as high as . In the winter the temperature rarely drops below . In the spring and autumn the heat is temperate, temperatures average around . Annual rainfall is extremely low. The
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Red Sea"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"lowest point",
"Red Sea"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
of which are venomous. Saudi Arabia is home to a rich marine life. The Red Sea in particular is a rich and diverse ecosystem. More than 1200 species of fish have been recorded in the Red Sea, and around 10 percent of these are found nowhere else. This also includes 42 species of deepwater fish. The rich diversity is in part due to the of coral reef extending along its coastline; these fringing reefs are 5000โ7000 years old and are largely formed of stony acropora and porites corals. The reefs form platforms and sometimes lagoons along the coast and occasional
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Red Sea"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"lowest point",
"Red Sea"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
other features such as cylinders (such as the Blue Hole (Red Sea) at Dahab). These coastal reefs are also visited by pelagic species of Red Sea fish, including some of the 44 species of shark. The Red Sea also contains many offshore reefs including several true atolls. Many of the unusual offshore reef formations defy classic (i.e., Darwinian) coral reef classification schemes, and are generally attributed to the high levels of tectonic activity that characterize the area. Domesticated animals include the legendary Arabian horse, Arabian camel, sheep, goats, cows, donkeys, chickens etc. Reflecting the country's dominant desert conditions, Saudi Arabia's
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"contains administrative territorial entity",
"Regions of Saudi Arabia"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
plant life mostly consists of herbs, plants and shrubs that require little water. The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is widespread. Administrative divisions Saudi Arabia is divided into 13 regions (; manatiq idฤriyya, sing. ู
ูุทูุฉ ุฅุฏุงุฑูุฉ; mintaqah idariyya). The regions are further divided into 118 governorates (; muhafazat, sing. ู
ุญุงูุธุฉ; muhafazah). This number includes the 13 regional capitals, which have a different status as municipalities (; amanah) headed by mayors (; amin). The governorates are further subdivided into sub-governorates (; marakiz, sing. ู
ุฑูุฒ; markaz). The 13 regions of Saudi Arabia. Cities Economy As of October 2018, Saudi Arabia is the largest
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"part of",
"Middle East"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
economy in the Middle East and the 18th largest in the world. Saudi Arabia has the world's second-largest proven petroleum reserves and the country is the largest exporter of petroleum. It also has the fifth-largest proven natural gas reserves. Saudi Arabia is considered an "energy superpower". It has the third highest total estimated value of natural resources, valued at US$34.4 trillion in 2016. Saudi Arabia's command economy is petroleum-based; roughly 63% of budget revenues and 67% of export earnings come from the oil industry. It is strongly dependent on foreign workers with about 80% of those employed in the private
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"OPEC"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
high rate of population growth. Per capita income fell from a high of $11,700 at the height of the oil boom in 1981 to $6,300 in 1998. Taking into account the impact of the real oil price changes on the Kingdom's real gross domestic income, the real command-basis GDP was computed to be 330.381 billion 1999 USD in 2010. Increases in oil prices in the aughts helped boost per capita GDP to $17,000 in 2007 dollars (about $7,400 adjusted for inflation), but have declined since oil price drop in mid-2014. OPEC (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) limits its members'
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"World Trade Organization"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
the performance of these privatized entities." The Tadawul All Share Index (TASI) of the Saudi stock exchange peaked at 16,712.64 in 2005, and closed at 8,535.60, at the end of 2013. In November 2005, Saudi Arabia was approved as a member of the World Trade Organization. Negotiations to join had focused on the degree to which Saudi Arabia is willing to increase market access to foreign goods and in 2000, the government established the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority to encourage foreign direct investment in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia maintains a list of sectors in which foreign investment is prohibited,
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"part of",
"Middle East"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
self-sufficient in a number of foodstuffs, including meat, milk and eggs. The country exports wheat, dates, dairy products, eggs, fish, poultry, fruits, vegetables and flowers to markets around the world. Dates, once a staple of the Saudi diet, are now mainly grown for global humanitarian aid. In addition, Saudi farmers grow substantial amounts of other grains such as barley, sorghum and millet. As of 2016, in the interest of preserving precious water resources, domestic production of wheat has ended. The Kingdom likewise has some of the most modern and largest dairy farms in the Middle East. Milk production boasts a
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"China"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"part of",
"Middle East"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
remarkably productive annual rate of 1,800 gallons per cow, one of the highest in the world. The local dairy manufacturing company Almarai is the largest vertically integrated dairy company in the Middle East. The Kingdom's most dramatic agricultural accomplishment, noted worldwide, was its rapid transformation from importer to exporter of wheat. In 1978, the country built its first grain silos. By 1984, it had become self-sufficient in wheat. Shortly thereafter, Saudi Arabia began exporting wheat to some 30 countries, including China and the former Soviet Union, and in the major producing areas of Tabuk, Hail and Qasim, average yields reached
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
3.6 tons per acre. The Kingdom has, however, stepped up fruit and vegetable production, by improving both agricultural techniques and the roads that link farmers with urban consumers. Saudi Arabia is a major exporter of fruits and vegetables to its neighbors. Among its most productive crops are watermelon, grapes, citrus fruits, onions, squash and tomatoes. At Jizan in the country's well-watered southwest, the Al-Hikmah Research Station is producing tropical fruits including pineapples, paw-paws, bananas, mangoes and guavas. The olive tree is indigenous to Saudi Arabia. In 2018 the Al Jouf Agricultural Development Company received a certificate of merit from The
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
trees soon. Consuming non-renewable groundwater resulted in the loss of an estimated four fifths of the total groundwater reserves by 2012. Water supply and sanitation Water supply and sanitation in Saudi Arabia is characterized by significant investments in seawater desalination, water distribution, sewerage and wastewater treatment leading to a substantial increase in access to drinking water and sanitation over the past decades. About 50% of drinking water comes from desalination, 40% from the mining of non-renewable groundwater and 10% from surface water, especially in the mountainous southwest of the country. The capital Riyadh, located in the heart of the country,
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located in or next to body of water",
"Persian Gulf"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
is supplied with desalinated water pumped from the Persian Gulf over a distance of 467 km. Given the substantial oil wealth, water is provided almost for free. Despite improvements service quality remains poor. For example, in Riyadh water was available only once every 2.5 days in 2011, while in Jeddah it is available only every 9 days. Institutional capacity and governance in the sector are weak, reflecting general characteristics of the public sector in Saudi Arabia. Since 2000, the government has increasingly relied on the private sector to operate water and sanitation infrastructure, beginning with desalination and wastewater treatment plants.
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Since 2008, the operation of urban water distribution systems is being gradually delegated to private companies as well. Tourism Although most tourism in Saudi Arabia still largely involves religious pilgrimages, there is growth in the leisure tourism sector. According to the World Bank, approximately 14.3 million people visited Saudi Arabia in 2012, making it the world's 19th-most-visited country. Tourism is an important component of the Saudi Vision 2030 and according to a report conducted by BMI Research in 2018, both religious and non-religious tourism have significant potential for expansion. Starting December 2018, the kingdom will offer an electronic visa for
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Diriyah"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
foreign visitors to attend sport events and concerts. The "sharek" visa process will start with 15 December, Saudia Ad Diriyah E Prix race. In September 2019, the Kingdom announced its plans to open visa applications for visitors, where people from about 50 countries would be able to get tourist visas to Saudi. Demographics The population of Saudi Arabia as of July 2013 is estimated to be 26.9 million, including between 5.5 million and 10 million non-nationalized immigrants, though the Saudi population has long proved difficult to accurately estimate due to Saudi leaders' historical tendency to inflate census results. Saudi population
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"capital",
"Riyadh"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official language",
"Arabic"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"language used",
"Najdi Arabic"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"language used",
"Hejazi Arabic"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"language used",
"Arabic"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
in urban metropolitan areasโspecifically Riyadh, Jeddah, or Dammam. Its population is also quite young with over half the population under 25 years old. A large fraction are foreign nationals. (The CIA Factbook estimated that foreign nationals living in Saudi Arabia made up about 21% of the population. Other estimates are 30% or 33%) As recently as the early 1960s, Saudi Arabia's slave population was estimated at 300,000. Slavery was officially abolished in 1962. Languages The official language of Saudi Arabia is Arabic. The three main regional variants spoken by Saudis are Hejazi Arabic (about 6 million speakers), Najdi Arabic (about
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official language",
"Arabic"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"language used",
"Gulf Arabic"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"language used",
"Arabic"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
8 million speakers), and Gulf Arabic (about 0.2 million speakers). Faifi is spoken by about 50,000. Saudi Sign Language is the principal language of the deaf community. The large expatriate communities also speak their own languages, the most numerous of which are Tagalog (700,000), Rohingya (400,000), Urdu (380,000), Egyptian Arabic (300,000), and Indonesian (250,000). Religions Virtually all Saudi citizens are Muslim (officially, all are), and almost all Saudi residents are Muslim. Estimates of the Sunni population of Saudi Arabia range between 75% and 90%, with the remaining 10โ25% being Shia Muslim. The official and dominant form of Sunni Islam in
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"located on terrain feature",
"Arabian Peninsula"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Saudi Arabia is commonly known as Wahhabism (proponents prefer the name Salafism, considering Wahhabi derogatory) , which was founded in the Arabian Peninsula by Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab in the 18th century. Other denominations, such as the minority Shia Islam, are systematically suppressed. According to estimates there are about 1,500,000 Christians in Saudi Arabia, almost all foreign workers. Saudi Arabia allows Christians to enter the country as foreign workers for temporary work, but does not allow them to practice their faith openly. The percentage of Saudi Arabian citizens who are Christians is officially zero, as Saudi Arabia forbids religious conversion
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
from Islam (apostasy) and punishes it by death. According to Pew Research Center there are 390,000 Hindus in Saudi Arabia, almost all foreign workers. There may be a significant fraction of atheists and agnostics in Saudi Arabia, although they are officially called "terrorists". In its 2017 religious freedom report, the US State Department named Saudi Arabia a Country of Particular Concern (CPC). Foreigners Saudi Arabia's Central Department of Statistics & Information estimated the foreign population at the end of 2014 at 33% (10.1 million). The CIA Factbook estimated that foreign nationals living in Saudi Arabia made up about 21% of
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"member of",
"Arab League"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
the population. Other sources report differing estimates. Indian: 1.5 million, Pakistani: 1.3 million, Egyptian: 900,000, Yemeni: 800,000, Bangladeshi: 400,000, Filipino: 500,000, Jordanian/Palestinian: 260,000, Indonesian: 250,000, Sri Lankan: 350,000, Sudanese: 250,000, Syrian: 100,000 and Turkish: 80,000. There are around 100,000 Westerners in Saudi Arabia, most of whom live in compounds or gated communities. Foreign Muslims who have resided in the kingdom for ten years may apply for Saudi citizenship. (Priority is given to holders of degrees in various scientific fields, and exception made for Palestinians who are excluded unless married to a Saudi national, because of Arab League instructions barring the
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"instance of",
"Country"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Arab states from granting them citizenship.) Saudi Arabia is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. As Saudi population grows and oil export revenues stagnate, pressure for "Saudization" (the replacement of foreign workers with Saudis) has grown, and the Saudi government hopes to decrease the number of foreign nationals in the country. Saudi Arabia expelled 800,000 Yemenis in 1990 and 1991 and has built a SaudiโYemen barrier against an influx of illegal immigrants and against the smuggling of drugs and weapons. In November 2013, Saudi Arabia expelled thousands of illegal Ethiopian residents from the Kingdom. Various Human Rights
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Yemen"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"Ethiopia"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"shares border with",
"Yemen"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
entities have criticised Saudi Arabia's handling of the issue. Over 500,000 undocumented migrant workers โ mostly from Somalia, Ethiopia, and Yemen โ have been detained and deported since 2013. Monarchs (1932โpresent) King Abdulaziz (1932โ1953); second longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Saud (1953โ1964); third longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Faisal (1964โ1975); fourth longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Khalid (1975โ1982); sixth longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Fahd (1982โ2005); longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Abdullah (2005โ2015); fifth longest reigning Saudi monarch. King Salman (2015โpresent); current monarch. Crown Princes (1933โpresent) Crown Prince Saud bin Abdulaziz (1933โ1953); became King. Crown Prince of King Abdulaziz. Crown
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"culture",
"Culture of Saudi Arabia"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Prince. Defense Minister of Saudi Arabia. Son of King Salman. Culture Saudi Arabia has centuries-old attitudes and traditions, often derived from Arab civilization. The main factors that influence the culture of Saudi Arabia are Islamic heritage and Bedouin traditions as well as its historical role as an ancient trade center. Religion in society The ejazi region, where the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina are located, is the destination of the แธคajj pilgrimage, and often deemed to be the cradle of Islam. Islam is the state religion of Saudi Arabia and its law requires that all citizens be Muslims.
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
Saudi Arabia
|
[
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"diplomatic relation",
"United States"
],
[
"Saudi Arabia",
"official religion",
"Islam"
]
] |
sovereign state in Western Asia
|
Neither Saudi citizens nor guest workers have the right of freedom of religion. The official and dominant form of Islam in the kingdomโWahhabismโarose in the central region of Najd, in the 18th century. Proponents call the movement "Salafism", and believe that its teachings purify the practice of Islam of innovations or practices that deviate from the seventh-century teachings of Muhammad and his companions. The Saudi government has often been viewed as an active oppressor of Shia Muslims because of the funding of the Wahhabi ideology which denounces the Shia faith. Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Saudi ambassador to the United States,
|
[
"Kingdom of Saudi Arabia",
"๐ธ๐ฆ",
"KSA",
"sa"
] |
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