Saudi Arabia

And You Thought Your In-laws Were Bad?
A Saudi woman threatens suicide unless King Abdullah agrees to reunite her with her husband who was ousted by the woman’s family.

Saudi Arabia: A Mystical Country
Saudi Arabia is not only a mystical country, it also represents a mystical way of life and is only rarely, and to a limited extent, open to non-Muslim foreigners.

Arab Culture: Properly Defining What Is Arabic
The Western world harbors many misconceptions about Arab culture, but the World Wide Web can be a great place to learn the true facts.

Religion: Saudi Mosques Open 24 Hours for Ramadan
Extra imams are to be drafted in to accommodate the annual increase in worshipers

700 Militants Arrested This Year, Saudis Say
Hiigh figure suggests the country's oil industry still faces significant threat from al-Qaida

Al-Qaida: Saudia Arabia Arrests 700 'militants' in Six Months
Figure suggests al-Qaida is still a significant threat despite the perception it has been effectively beaten in the kingdom

Warning That Oil Summit Could Push Price Up
Meeting of producers and users in Saudi Arabia this weekend could propel the cost of energy higher

Saudi Arabia to Raise Crude Production to Ease Prices
Opec to increase July output in second consecutive rise in the hope it will depress the crude oil price

Saudi Arabia to Call Summit of Oil Producers
The world's biggest oil producer said that recent price rises were unjustified - but stopped short of promising the increase in production requested by western leaders

Fuel Costs: Saudi Arabia to Call Opec Summit in Attempt to Stem 'unjustified' Oil Price Surge
World's biggest oil producer says record leap of $10 and recent rises are not justified by market fundamentals

You Don't Have to Western to Be Happy
Riazat Butt: I returned to Saudi Arabia, and met a woman who says women there are not oppressed, just different – but I'm not convinced

Mecca Talks Stress Religious Tolerance
More than 500 delegates from around the world gather in the Islamic holy city to foster better relations

Islam's Holiest City Set for 130-skyscraper Redevelopment
Six development projects ordered by Saudi monarch, King Abdullah, will transform Mecca

Realism From Riyadh
Ian Black on a rare insight into Saudi Arabia's approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Saudi Arabia: First Women-Only Hotel with cheap rates
Anyways, the Moslem laws in Saudi Arabia seem to be a little bit too severe from the past. This is a good response to all Saudi Arabian peoples and tourist. Saudi Arabia hotels offer comfort, quality and great value for the money, ideal for leisure and business travelers.

Bird flu in Saudi Arabia resulted in culling poultry
Tamiflu belongs to a group of medicines called neuraminidase inhibitors. These types of medications attack influenza virus and prevent it from spreading inside your body.

Forget the Beheadings, and Think of Settling Marital Disputes
Talk of sharia law conjures up images of beheadings, floggings, stonings and amputations carried out in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran

From Preston to Mecca
Hajj diary: Riazat Butt joins the 25,000-strong British camp at the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia

Saudis Signal Doubts Over Middle East Peace Talks Called By Us
Saudi Arabia has signaled that it will not attend the Middle East peace conference scheduled by the US for this month unless there is significant agreement in advance on the core issues that divide Israelis and Palestinians.

United Plan Saudi Trip in January
Man Utd have announced they will visit Saudi Arabia in January to play a testimonial match for Sami Al-Jaber.

Saudi Women Fight Driving Ban
Saudi Arabian women are mounting a challenge to the ban on female drivers in a rare sign of public opposition to the kingdom's ultra-conservative social mores.

Huge Saudi Force to Defend Oilfields From Al-qaida
Anxieties about al-Qaida attacks and a US-led war against Iran have prompted Saudi Arabia to establish a special force - being trained by an American defence contractor - to protect its oilfields.

Infections Spread As Toll From Asian Monsoon Hits 2,000
· Lack of drinking water is most pressing problem· Saudi Arabia boosts international aid effort

Abeer Mishkhas – We’ll Always Have Haifa: Interview
Media should seriously focus on the all the problems engulfing the Arab and Muslim world, and by that I am not saying not to cover entertainment.

Riyadh Gives Talks With Israel Cautious Welcome
Saudi Arabia would sit down with Israel at a US-proposed Middle East peace conference, provided it dealt with matters of substance, say Saudi officials.

US Accused of Fuelling Arms Race With $20bn Arab Weapons Sale
The Bush administration is facing claims that it is fueling an arms race in the Middle East following the disclosure of a plan to sell $20bn (£9.8bn) of advanced weaponry to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.

Saudi Arabia's Revived Plan For Middle East Peace
Hopes that Saudi Arabia holds the key to quickly unlocking the door to Middle East peace look over-optimistic, writes Ian Black in Riyadh.

INTERVIEW: Dr. Lamia Baeshen About Her Mission To Preserve The Culture Of Hijaz, The Western Region Of Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia
When, across time and distance we recognize ourselves in other and others in ourselves, do we not recognize something enduring, a privileged insight…

Terror Fears As French Men Shot Dead in Saudi Arabia
The spectre of anti-western terrorist attacks returned to haunt Saudi Arabia yesterday when three French nationals were shot dead in a remote desert area in the north of the country.

Arms and the Middlemen
It is not in Britain's national interest to maintain this corrupt liaison with Saudi Arabia. By David Leigh

The Guardian Profile: King Abdullah
Saudi Arabia's ruler King Abdullah likes to appear ordinary but takes religion seriously.

Saudi Driving Ban on Women Extends to Golf Carts
Saudi Arabia's longstanding ban on female drivers went an extra mile this week when women were barred from using golf carts to move around a cultural festival, according to Saudi newspapers.

Saudis Pledge to Increase Crude Supply As Price Nears All-time High
Saudi Arabia was yesterday forced to pledge an increase in the supply of crude as threats to production around the globe pushed the price of oil to within three dollars of the all-time high reached after Hurricane Katrina last August.

Eurofighter Sale to Saudi Arabia Agreed
The government agreed today to supply Saudi Arabia with the new Eurofighter in the first contract for the jet fighter outside Europe.

Saudi Women Make Electoral Breakthrough
Two candidates became the first women to win elected office in Saudi Arabia yesterday when they took seats on the board of Jeddah's chamber of commerce.

Saudi Boy, 14, Faces Execution
A 14-year-old boy is facing execution in Saudi Arabia after being found guilty in a flawed trial of murdering a three-year-old girl, Human Rights Watch said yesterday.

Cartoons Herald Return of Cinema to Saudi Arabia
· Clerics killed off public screenings in 70s and 80s · Women and children to make up first audience

Beaten Saudi Tv Presenter Flees
Rania al-Baz, a Saudi Arabian television presenter who shocked her country by publishing photographs of herself after being beaten by her husband, has left for France, apparently never to return. by Ed Vulliamy.

How Rania Al-baz Broke the Saudi Taboo
Rania al-Baz's popularity as a TV news presenter was always an implicit threat to Saudi Arabia's repressive, male-dominated culture. But it wasn't until her husband beat her so badly he thought he had killed her - and she decided to publish the photos of her injuries - that she really shook Saudi society. She talks to Ed Vulliamy about what happened when she dared to challenge the culture of violence against women

Don't Pay Me Lip-service, Saudi King Tells Subjects
Saudi Arabia's newly enthroned King Abdullah has told his citizens they should no longer kiss their monarch's hand because it is degrading and un-Islamic.

Oil Hits $64 a Barrel and Sends Petrol Prices Soaring
Oil prices set new records on both sides of the Atlantic yesterday after the United States shut its embassy in Saudi Arabia in response to fears of an attack.

Westerners Warned Over Saudi Terror Threat
Britain has revised its travel advice on Saudi Arabia for the second time in 24 hours, highlighting "credible" reports that terrorists are about to launch attacks on westerners.

Westerners Warned Over Threat to Saudi Arabia
Britain has revised its travel advice for Saudi Arabia to highlight 'credible' reports that terrorists are planning attacks on westerners, after the US embassy decided to close for two days in response to terror threats.

Saudi Fears Send Oil Prices Soaring
Oil prices rose to a new high today as security concerns in Saudi Arabia and problems at US refineries unsettled markets.

Saudis Warned Uk of London Attacks
Saudi Arabia officially warned Britain of an imminent terrorist attack on London just weeks ahead of the 7 July bombings.

Princes and Presidents Mark King Fahd's Passing
Heads of state, Saudi princes and Islamic clerics gathered today for the funeral of King Fahd, Saudi Arabia's ruler for the last 23 years.

Obituary: King Fahd of Saudia Arabia
Monarch who saw the material transformation of his kingdom undermined by the oil price collapse and his own alliance with the west.

A Traditionalist Who Watches 33 Tvs at Once
Among members of a royal family noted for their extravagant lifestyles, Saudi Arabia's new ruler stands out as one who hankers after the simple life of the desert.

Prince Abdullah Ascends the Saudi Throne - and Insists It Will Be Business As Usual
Saudi Arabia moved quickly yesterday to reassure the world that the death of King Fahd, its ruler for the past 23 years, would not bring turmoil or a sudden change of direction to the world's largest oil exporter.

Long-lived the Kings
Brian Whitaker contemplates what the future holds for Saudi Arabia in the reign of King Abdullah and beyond.

Saudi king dies
King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, the absolute monarch of the world's largest oil-producing country, died today, Saudi state television announced.

Saudi Alert As King Fahd Rushed to Hospital
Saudi Arabia declared a state of alert and cancelled all military leave last night as speculation swept the capital that King Fahd had died.

Clerics' Choices Clean Up in Saudi Election
Candidates backed by conservative religious scholars have almost swept the board in the final stage of Saudi Arabia's local elections amid complaints of unfair practice from defeated candidates.

Arrests at Saudi 'gay Wedding'
The Saudi Arabian security forces have arrested 110 men at a "gay wedding" party in Jeddah, according to a Saudi online newspaper.

Opec Members Oppose Saudi Oil Boost
Saudi Arabia ran into opposition today over its plan for a modest boost in oil output to keep prices from rising.

Saudis Lean on Syria to Quit Lebanon
Saudi Arabia is pressuring the Syrian president, Bashar Assad, to set a firm timetable for withdrawal of his troops from Lebanon, Arab government sources said yesterday.

British Expatriates Flee Saudi Arabia
The number of British expatriates in Saudi Arabia has dropped from 30,000 to 20,000 in the past 12 months in response to beheadings, shootings and other attacks by al-Qaida, a British official said yesterday.

Nuclear Sales Report Rejected
Pakistan has denied allegations that its disgraced nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan may have sold secrets to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other Arab countries.

Oh What a Lovely Jail
Al-Qaida supporters detained in Saudi Arabia have appeared in a television documentary about al-Haer jail, 25 miles south of the Saudi capital, Riyadh, and delivered rave reviews of life inside.

Saudis Polish Their Image in Us Ads
Saudi Arabia has begun an advertising campaign in 19 American cities to counter scepticism of its commitment to fighting terrorism. The advertisements, which will run until September 6, quote from the September 11 commission's report as a way of challenging the allegations made in the...

Danger Money for Expats As the Saudi Exodus Grows
Extra £1,000 a month for staff willing to stay on. Western firms are offering substantial sums of "danger money" to expatriate staff in Saudi Arabia to stem a panic-driven exodus from the kingdom in the wake of al-Qaida attacks.

Sacked Sergeant is New Al-qaida Chief in Saudi Arabia
A former sergeant in the Saudi security forces has been appointed head of al-Qaida in the kingdom after the death of Abd al-Aziz al-Muqrin, the previous leader, in a gun battle on Friday. Paying tribute to Muqrin for "having prepared sincere men from among the combatants to succeed him...

Execution Prompts Fears of Exodus By Key Foreign Workers
Britain and America launched a desperate effort yesterday to prevent more than 30,000 of their citizens fleeing Saudi Arabia in fear after the execution last week of an American technician by an Islamic militant group.

American Beheaded in Saudi Arabia
Al-Qaida's suspected leader in Saudi Arabia was reported killed last night, after the group he was believed to lead said it had beheaded a kidnapped US engineer.

Police Hunt Killers of Bbc Cameraman
Frank Gardner, the BBC journalist seriously wounded in a shooting incident in Saudi Arabia yesterday, is being guarded by special forces as the search continues for the killers of his colleague Simon Cumbers. By Jason Deans.

BBC Man 'critical But Stable'
BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner is in a 'critical but stable' condition today following yesterday's gun attack in Saudi Arabia that left a colleague, Simon Cumbers, dead. By Jason Deans.

Opec to Raise Output By 2m Barrels a Day
Opec today agreed to raise its oil production ceiling by two million barrels a day at the start of next month, but the move fell short of expectations. The figure was less than the increase that had been proposed by Saudi Arabia to ease pressure on prices. Riyadh had called for an...

Saudis Crack Down on Islamic Charities
Saudi Arabia dissolved several Riyadh-based Islamic charities yesterday after criticism from the US that funds had been channelled to al-Qaida and other militant groups. The crackdown came amid continuing violence in the country which added to nervousness among expatriates and oil traders...

Attack on Key Saudi Oil Terminal Could Destabilise West
Fears of upheaval in Saudi Arabia helped set world crude oil prices to 21-year highs of $42.45 per barrel ahead of an Opec ministerial meeting today.

Shaken Expatriates Rethink Saudi Future
Foreign companies in Saudi Arabia are offering to repatriate the families of their staff in the wake of the bloody weekend rampage by militants that left 22 dead, most of them foreigners. As new clashes between suspected militants and security forces were reported in the west of the...

Oil Prices Rise Following Saudi Siege
Oil prices today rose by almost 2% after a bloody siege in the Saudi Arabian oil city of Khobar, carried out on Saturday by suspected al-Qaida militants, left 22 people dead. In morning trading, US light crude was up 72 cents, standing at $40.6 a barrel as business resumed after a...

Paying the Price for Incompetence
Gunmen who carried out a weekend killing spree in Saudi Arabia escaped after yet another security fiasco. It is time for the interior minister to go, writes Brian Whitaker.

Saudi Women Get the Vote
Saudi Arabia is preparing to break with tradition and risk the wrath of religious conservatives by allowing women to take part in its first elections.

Saudis Deny Anti-jewish Visa Policy
Saudi Arabia has disowned a statement by its tourism organisation that Jews are not allowed to enter the country. The kingdom recently launched its first drive to attract non-Muslim tourists but an announcement on the tourism commission's website, first reported in the Guardian last week,...

Tourists Invited to Saudi Sea and Sun
Saudi Arabia, normally a byword for stern and puritanical sobriety, is preparing to show the world its jollier side by issuing visas to tourists.

Saudi Security Barrier Stirs Anger in Yemen
The leaders of Yemen and Saudi Arabia are due to meet today in an effort to settle a dispute over a security barrier the Saudis are building along their shared frontier. Saudi Arabia, which is battling against insurgents sympathetic to Osama bin Laden, says the barrier will stem the flow...

Saudis Find Al-qaida Training Camps
Authorities in Saudi Arabia have discovered camps in remote parts of the country used for training Islamist militants to carry out attacks, an interior ministry official said yesterday. The camps were run by Turki Nasser al-Dandani and Youssef Salih al-Ayeeri, two prominent militants who...

Saudi Ban on Female Doll Imports
Saudi Arabia has banned imports of female dolls and teddy bears, and shopkeepers have been given three months to dispose of any stock. The ban also applies to non-Islamic religious symbols, such as crosses and statues of the Buddha. It was imposed by Prince Nayef, 69, the interior...

Saudi Raids Net Expat Teachers
A Briton and an American who took diving lessons in the Red Sea are under arrest in Saudi Arabia - apparently as part of a crackdown on terrorism. The detention of the two men, who both teach in Saudi Arabia, is thought to have been prompted by fears of an attack on shipping by Islamic...

Saudi Security Forces Arrest British Man
A young British Muslim convert working as an English language teacher in Saudi Arabia has been detained by Saudi security forces. David Heaton, 24, is described as a devout Muslim and was detained more than a week ago with an American colleague, Abdullatif Ibrahim Bilal, after allegedly...

Al-Qaida 'targeting Saudi Royals'
A car bomb that killed 17 people and injured 122 in Riyadh at the weekend was part of a campaign by al-Qaida to overthrow the Saudi monarchy, a US official said yesterday. "It is quite clear to me that al-Qaida wants to take down the royal family and the government of Saudi Arabia," the...

Gulf on Terror Alert As Blast Hits Riyadh
Smoke seen rising near expatriate compound in Saudi Arabian capital. An explosion rocked the Saudi capital Riyadh late last night. Smoke could be seen rising from an area in the western part of the city, and there were reports that it was at a residential compound housing foreigners.

US Citizens Advised to Avoid Saudi Arabia
The US government warned American citizens today to avoid all non-essential travel to Saudi Arabia following "credible" intelligence suggesting a terror threat to western airlines. Washington's advisory comes just days after the Foreign Office made a similar warning to Britons last Friday...

Teaching Compassion For Animals In Saudi Arabia
A new campaign aimed to raise public awareness of animal welfare was recently launched in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Al-Qaida Suspect Dies in Saudi Raid
An al-Qaida suspect at the centre of the FBI's recent September 11 anniversary alert has been killed in a shootout with security forces in Saudi Arabia. Sultan al-Qahtani, a 29-year-old Saudi, was one of four men named on September 7 in an FBI worldwide alert apparently prompted by...

Saudis Consider Nuclear Bomb
Saudi Arabia, in response to the current upheaval in the Middle East, has embarked on a strategic review that includes acquiring nuclear weapons, the Guardian has learned.

Britons tell of Saudi torture
Britons who were imprisoned in Saudi Arabia revealed yesterday how they were tortured and beaten into confessing to crimes they did not commit.

Saudi Pact Paves Way to Wto
The European Union and Saudi Arabia yesterday signed a trade agreement which could ease the kingdom's path towards membership of the World Trade Organisation.

Jail Britons reject Saudi '£1m hush money offer'
British prisoners who were repeatedly tortured in Saudi Arabia launched legal action last night against the Middle East kingdom, defying last-minute attempts to buy their silence.

Saudi Arabia to question '12,000 citizens'
Riyadh launches full-scale anti-terrorism sweep as rulers acquiesce to American demands to interrogate long list of potential suspects.

Saudi plane plot uncovered by chance
The threat to shoot down a British Airways plane in Saudi Arabia came to light apparently by chance after a man drove his car through a checkpoint in Riyadh last Sunday and opened fire when the police gave chase.

BA Halts Flights to Saudi Amid Terror Fears
British Airways yesterday suspended all flights to Saudi Arabia following warnings of an imminent attempt by Islamic militants to shoot down one of its aircraft. The move followed a series of gun battles in the kingdom as Saudi security forces attempted to round up suspected militants...

Ex-pat dream that turned to nightmare
The six men released yesterday after spending more than three years in prison in Saudi Arabia were drawn to the desert kingdom by the prospect of an easy life, tax-free.

Saudi system condemned
The immigration card that foreigners fill in when they arrive in Saudi Arabia has a warning note printed in red ink: drug smuggling carries the death penalty.

Britons Set Free After Secret Deal
Six men accused of bombing in Saudi Arabia protest innocence.

Saudis Free Bomb Blast Britons
Six British men imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for allegedly carrying out a bombing campaign have been granted clemency and freed, the Saudi embassy in London confirmed today. Saudi authorities had claimed the men were bootleggers involved in a bloody turf war over the lucrative trade in...

An Axis of Junkies
Classified pages in the Congress report on September 11 have stirred curiosity about the relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia, says Julian Borger.

Saudis Start Their Charm Offensive
Saudi Arabia yesterday launched its first gas licensing round in an attempt to attract some of the western investment heading for Iraq, Kuwait and other oil nations now favoured by America. Saudi energy minister Ali al-Naimi, attending a special conference in London, said that 41 firms,...

Religious Police Told to Smile
Saudia Arabia's feared religious police are being given special training to "deal effectively and pleasantly with the public", the Jeddah-based daily Arab News reported yesterday. About 200 members have attended the course in "communication skills" and "success strategies".

UK Tries to Free Men in Saudi Jail
A Foreign Office minister confirmed for the first time yesterday that the government is negotiating with Saudi Arabia for the release of six Britons detained for bomb attacks on westerners. Bill Rammell told the Commons that the talks were at a "sensitive stage". Reacting to...

Editor Who Fought Saudi Religious Zealots Sacked
The battle between conservatives and reformers in Saudi Arabia heated up yesterday after the sacking of a newspaper editor who campaigned against religious extremism. Jamal Khashoggi, editor of al-Watan, the kingdom's most liberal Arabic daily, was summoned to the information ministry on...

Saudis Contest £2m Torture Claim
The Saudi Arabian government will go to the high court today to try to strike out a £2m compensation claim by a British man who says he was kept in solitary confinement and tortured for 67 days by officials from the Saudi ministry of the interior. Ron Jones was standing outside a...

Envoy Hints at Britons' Release
The six Britons jailed in Saudi Arabia for bomb attacks on westerners were given fresh hope of an early release yesterday when the Saudi ambassador to London said that discussions were going on between the two governments about granting clemency. The men, accused of being involved in a...

Three Saudi Bombers Escaped Police
Three of the suicide bombers who attacked housing complexes in Saudi Arabia last week were among 19 men who escaped arrest during police raids six days earlier, Prince Nayef, the interior minister, said yesterday. The prince's admission is likely to raise further questions about the...

Expatriate Britons weigh risks of good life in Saudi Arabia
The 30,000 British expatriates in Saudi Arabia were debating the danger of remaining in the country yesterday as the death toll mounted from Monday's terrorist attack on three housing compounds for foreigners. Airlines were besieged with requests for outward flights.

Bush feels the heat after Riyadh bombings
The impact of the terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia began to reverberate through US politics yesterday as the Bush administration defended itself against charges that it had taken its eye off the ball over al-Qaida because of its obsession with Iraq.

Saudis Feel Us Wrath Over Bombs
The Bush administration gave Saudi Arabia a rare public dressing down yesterday, accusing it of ignoring earlier requests to step up security at the sites of Monday night's bombings, while Saudi intelligence sources admitted that the al-Qaida suicide cell involved in the attacks had been under...

Oil prices rise after Riyadh bombings
Oil prices rose sharply today following a series of bomb attacks on western residential compounds in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh, that left up to 40 or 50 people dead.

America signals withdrawal of troops from Saudi Arabia
The US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld yesterday, signalled a transformation in the US military presence in the Gulf region by announcing that all but a handful of American troops will be pulled out of Saudi Arabia by summer's end.

Torture Victim Sues Saudis
A British man arrested and tortured in Saudi Arabia is suing the Saudi royal family for £2m in the British courts. Ron Jones was held for 67 days by the ministry of the interior in Riyadh after he was injured in a bomb explosion in the Saudi capital in March 2001. Despite...

US may shift air war HQ from Saudi base to Qatar
The nerve centre for US air operations in the Gulf region looks likely to be moved from Saudi Arabia to Qatar, in what may herald a rethink of America's military presence.

US troops seen at key Saudi airport
Hundreds of American troops have taken control of a civilian airport in Saudi Arabia, close to the border with Iraq, according to a witness. The move - which has not been officially confirmed - calls into question the kingdom's public statements that it will not facilitate a military strike against the Baghdad regime.

Saudis Jailed for Al-qaida Plot to Bomb British Ships
Three Saudi Arabian members of an al-Qaida cell which allegedly plotted attacks on Royal Navy and US navy ships in the Straits of Gibraltar were jailed for 10 years by a Casablanca court yesterday. Five Moroccans, including the three men's wives, who were accused of aiding the plotters...

UN casts doubt on Saudi trials
A damning United Nations report on the "trial" of five Britons accused of a bombing campaign in Saudi Arabia is to be presented to next month's meeting of the UN commission on human rights.

Briton Shot Dead in Saudi Arabia
A British businessman working for BAE Systems was shot dead when he stopped at traffic lights in the Saudi capital Riyadh yesterday, a day after the Foreign Office warned Britons to leave the neighbouring state of Kuwait. The killing raises fears that al-Qaida sympathisers are stepping up...

Briton Shot Dead in Riyadh
A British man has been shot and killed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the Saudi interior ministry has said. The murdered man was named as Robert Denith, a 37-year-old father of two and an employee of BAE Systems in the city. Mr Denith was waiting at traffic lights in his car when he...

90 Saudis charged for al-Qaida links
Saudi Arabia, which has often denied having an al-Qaida presence on its soil, announced yesterday that at least 90 citizens will be prosecuted for links to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.

Lobby for Saudi Prisoner
The family of a man serving an 18-year jail sentence in Saudi Arabia is lobbying the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, today to secure his release.

Saudi Six 'left to Rot'
The Foreign Office is ignoring the plight of Britons wrongly jailed by our oil-rich ally. They are the forgotten men: sacrificed to global politics and oil interests, six British citizens who have been tortured, abused and left to rot in a Saudi Arabian jail.

14 Trampled to Death at Hajj
Fourteen Muslim pilgrims were trampled to death today in Saudi Arabia while performing a stone-throwing ritual during the Hajj. The ritual involves large crowds of people throwing pebbles at three stone pillars, commemorating the place where Muslims believe the devil tempted Abraham. The...

Briton Held By Saudis Admits Part in Bombings
The families of five Britons detained in Saudi Arabia in connection with a series of anti-western bombings fear that the men are coming under renewed pressure to admit they carried out the attacks. The concerns were raised after it emerged that one of the men, James Lee, has withdrawn his...

US Says Saudi Arabia Will Allow Use of Air Bases Against Iraq
The Saudi government has agreed to allow American planes to use its bases in a war with Iraq, US military commanders have claimed - providing a crucial strategic boost for the Bush administration as it ordered the deployment of thousands more troops, two more aircraft carriers, and one of the...

Sleeping With the Enemy
There is more to US appeasement of Saudi Arabia than meets the eye, argues Simon Tisdall.

Saudis React With Fury to American Accusations of Funding Al-qaida
A row between the US and Saudi Arabia over the funding of terrorism turned into a no-holds-barred battle yesterday, when the kingdom unleashed the fury of its normally state-restrained media against Washington. The flare-up began with allegations that thousands of dollars in charitable...

Saudis Admit to Al-qaida Threat As 100 Are Held
Saudi Arabia, normally reluctant to admit to an al-Qaida presence on its soil, conceded yesterday that it had detained more than 100 people and questioned 700. The statement by Prince Nayef, the interior minister, was the first official acknowledgment of so many detainees on terrorism...

Crew Thwarts Saudi Hijack Attempt
A Saudi passenger attempted to hijack a Saudi Arabian airlines jet today soon after it left Khartoum, but the airline crew managed to overcome the man and arrest him, a Sudanese official said. The Airbus 300 jetliner returned to Khartoum and all passengers and crew were safe, said Major...

Saudi Authorities Blame Alcohol Traders for Bombing
In a claim Western diplomats will receive with scepticism, Saudi Arabian authorities said today that the German man who died in yesterday's car bombing in Riyadh was killed over an illegal alcohol bootlegging dispute. Saudi authorities have blamed a string of bombings targeting foreigners...

Embassy blamed for bombings
Saudis accuse British staff of destabilisation campaign. British embassy staff in Riyadh have been accused by the Saudi Arabian authorities of coordinating a campaign of anti-western terrorist bombings in the kingdom, the Guardian has learned.

Saudis in secret moves for new king
Members of the inner circle of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia have held a series of secret meetings in Geneva to discuss the succession amid fears that the ailing king's health is fast deteriorating, it was reported yesterday.

Saudis will not aid US war effort
Saudi Arabia, the main launch pad for the 1991 war against Iraq, has made clear to Washington, publicly and privately, that it will not allow US forces to use its territory in any way for a new attack, the foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, said yesterday.

Britons left in jail amid fears that Saudi Arabia could fall to al-Qaeda
Saudi Arabia is teetering on the brink of collapse, fuelling Foreign Office fears of an extremist takeover of one of the West's key allies in the war on terror.

Expat Brits live in fear as Saudis turn on the West
Saudi Arabia's community of foreigners is trapped between bombings by Islamic terrorists, police torture and palace feuding.

Britons in Saudi Bomb Case Lodge Appeals
Lawyers for five Britons held in connection with anti-western bombings in Saudi Arabia yesterday lodged defence submissions with the supreme court in the kingdom. The Britons, who received sentences of between 12 years and the death penalty at a secret hearing this year, hope the...

Saudis Harden Case Against Britons
A Belgian detained in Saudi Arabia will be the "star witness" in a case against five Britons held in connection with a string of anti-western bombings in the kingdom. According to lawyers acting for the Britons, the Belgian, Raf Schyvens, has entered into plea-bargaining negotiations with...

The women that time forgot
New laws may help blow cobwebs from Saudi Arabia's ancient restrictions. Saudi Arabia is to gender what apartheid South Africa was to race. In public life a woman is almost entirely segregated from men: excluded from the workplace, penned in special "family sections" in restaurants, taught in separate schools and colleges, and forbidden to drive.

Fear Among Expats As Bomb Kills Banker
The 26,000-strong British community in Saudi Arabia was last night reeling following the death of another Briton in a car bomb, the latest in a series of explosions aimed at expatriates in the kingdom in the last 18 months. Simon Veness, 35, a banker with the Al Saudi Al Fransi bank, was...

Saudis Hold Al-qaida Suspects
Saudi Arabia is holding 13 people linked to al-Qaida who are suspected of planning attacks in the kingdom, the official Saudi news agency said yesterday. Among those detained is a Sudanese man who claimed to have fired a surface-to-air missile at an American warplane taking off from the...

Britain reports Saudis over arms plane
Britain is to lodge a protest with the United Nations based on evidence that Saudi Arabia is sheltering an aircraft which was allegedly used to supply arms to Osama bin Laden's forces in Afghanistan.

Britons Told of Fate in Saudi Case
Five British men detained in Saudi Arabia were told last night that they face sentences of up to 18 years and in one case a possible death sentence for their alleged role in a bombing campaign that left one Briton dead and several others injured. Lawyers acting for the men visited them in...

18 Years for Britons in Secret Saudi Trial
Two Britons have been secretly sentenced to 18 years in prison in Saudi Arabia for their alleged involvement in a bombing campaign in the kingdom, the Guardian has learned. One of the Britons, James Lee, was sentenced in October last year, while James Cottle was convicted and sentenced in...

Tension on the ranch as US-Saudi talks begin
President Bush was at his ranch in Texas yesterday, holding what were believed to be tense and complex discussions with Saudi Arabia's main power broker, Crown Prince Abdullah.

Jeremy Rifkin: Pumping up the pressure
Saudi Arabia may join other Arab states in using oil as a weapon in the Middle East conflict, a policy that would plunge both developed and developing countries into deep crisis.

Saudi Diplomat's Poem for Killers
Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Britain has written a poem praising Palestinian suicide bombers that was published yesterday in a mass market Arabic daily. The news is likely to strain relations between the oil rich Gulf state and the United States after Ghazi Algosaibi also used the poem to...

Arab League Endorses Saudi Peace Plan
Arab leaders unanimously endorsed a Saudi peace plan for the Middle East today at a summit in Lebanon, delegates said. The plan, proposed by Saudi Arabia's crown prince Abdullah, offers a "normalisation" of relations with Israel if it withdraws from all occupied Arab land, accepts a...

US Rich Accused of Servant Abuse As Saudi Princess Goes Into Hiding
Princess Buniah al Saud, socialite and niece of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, no longer wants to show her face. She has gone to ground in Washington, under the protection of the Saudi embassy. Her live-in maid, Ismiyati Soryono, has accused her of abuse, which has highlighted concerns about...

Syria Backs Saudi Middle East Plan
The Middle East peace proposal put forward by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah gained significant momentum yesterday when Syria gave its backing to the land-for-peace plan, according to the official Saudi press agency.

EU Takes Initiative on Saudi Peace Plan
Europe's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, met Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia yesterday to explore a Middle East peace initiative that has caused a flurry of excitement around the world. Mr Solana left the two-hour meeting in Jeddah without speaking to reporters, but a Saudi...

US drops Saudi 'cover-up' rule
Treading a delicate path between sexual equality and Muslim sensitivity, the US has relaxed the rule that its servicewomen in Saudi Arabia must cover up from head to foot when they leave their bases. The change is a partial victory for Lieutenant-Colonel Martha McSally, America's...

Saudis tell US forces to get out
Saudi Arabia's rulers are poised to throw US strategy in the Middle East into disarray by asking Washington to pull its forces out of the kingdom because they have become a "political liability". Senior Saudi officials have privately complained that the US has "outstayed its welcome" and...