The Fight for Women’s Rights in Saudi Arabia Must Go On

The lifting of Saudi Arabia’s infamous driving ban last week leaves much to be celebrated throughout the kingdom, but the Saudi government still leaves a considerable amount to be desired where women’s rights are concerned. The Saudi government’s minimal step in promoting gender equality is an undeniable accomplishment for women’s rights activists, but only serves[…]

Profiles in Persecution: Fatema Dawood Juma & Zakeya Isa AlBarboori

Zakeya Isa AlBarboori, a 30-year-old chemical engineer, and her niece Fatema Dawood Juma, a 19-year-old student at Bahrain University, were recently subjected to an enforced disappearance of more than three weeks, as they were detained by government officials who failed to disclose their fate and whereabouts. Only after this period of nearly a month were[…]

Profiles in Persecution – International Women’s Day: Amnah AlJuaid

Amnah AlJuaid is a 27-year-old Saudi citizen who was kidnapped and abused by her own father, Mohammed AlJuaid. A video in which she asked for help to escape from her father’s violence went viral online in 2017, and her case has been addressed by the Special Procedures offices of the UN Human Rights Council. On[…]

Saudi Girls Can Attend Gym Class, but Guardianship Still Lurks

On Tuesday 11 July, the Saudi Ministry of Education (MoE) announced that schools will provide physical education classes to girls for the first time in the kingdom’s history. This development marks a rare, if slight loosening of the restrictions placed on women in one of the world’s most restrictive societies. The decision is part of[…]

UN Experts Grill Kuwait on Torture, Trafficking, Violence against Women

On 25 and 26 July 2016, Kuwait undertook its periodic review under the Convention against Torture, wherein the Committee in charge of implementing the Convention quizzed Kuwait on the implementation of its international obligations. Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) assesses that the Committee accurately understood the situation of torture as being[…]