[73] The second stage of the kingdom saw the transformation of Dedan from a mere city-state of which only influence they exerted was inside their city walls, to a kingdom that encompasses much wider domain that marked the pinnacle of Lihyan civilization. (source: Islamic Political Culture, Democracy, and Human Rights: A Comparative Study, p. 93 Daniel E. Price – 1999, Officially the Republic of China, participates as ", This page was last edited on 11 April 2021, at 04:46. In 2018, superstars like John Cena, Kevin Owens and Daniel Bryan refused to fly to Saudi, over the Kingdom's declining human rights records citing Jamal Khashoggi's assassination. [424] A large fraction are foreign nationals. [172] Investigations by both US and UK authorities resulted, in 2010, in plea bargain agreements with the company, by which it paid $447 million in fines but did not admit to bribery. The documents showed Saudi Arabia as allegedly implementing a ‘sportswashing’ strategy, inclusive of meetings and official calls with supreme authorities of associations like the Major League Soccer (MLS), World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), National Basketball Association (NBA). Women do not have equal rights to men in the kingdom; the U.S. State Department considers Saudi Arabian government's discrimination against women a "significant problem" in Saudi Arabia and notes that women have few political rights due to the government's discriminatory policies. [309] Congress overwhelmingly rejected President Barack Obama's veto. [298] Apart from China, the UN nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was also assisting Saudi's nuclear ambition. [419] Most Saudis live in the Hejaz (35%), Najd (28%), and the Eastern Province (15%). The prehistory of Saudi Arabia shows some of the earliest traces of human activity in the world. [64] Mesopotamian inscribed clay tablets suggests that, in the early period of Dilmun, a form of hierarchical organized political structure existed. [537][538] Human rights issues that have attracted strong criticism include the extremely disadvantaged position of women (see Women below), capital punishment for homosexuality,[334] religious discrimination, the lack of religious freedom and the activities of the religious police (see Religion in society below). Saudi Arabia has since been a totalitarian absolute monarchy, effectively a hereditary dictatorship governed along Islamist lines. [355] It is geographically the largest country in the Middle East and the Arabian Plate. Among its plans were to launch "economic cities" (e.g. [199], The Saudi system of justice has been criticized for its "ultra-puritanical judges", who are often harsh in their sentencing (with beheading for the crime of witchcraft), but also sometimes overly lenient (for cases of rape or wife-beating) and slow, for example leaving thousands of abandoned women unable to secure a divorce. 15 of the 19 terrorists involved in September 11 attacks in New York City, Washington, D.C., and near Shanksville, Pennsylvania were Saudi nationals. The Saudi Arabia national football team is considered as one of Asia's most successful national teams, having reached a joint record 6 AFC Asian Cup finals, winning three of those finals (1984, 1988, and 1996) and having qualified for the World Cup four consecutive times ever since debuting at the 1994 tournament. The southwest province of Asir is mountainous, and contains the 3,133 m (10,279 ft) Mount Sawda, which is the highest point in the country. [410], Starting December 2018, the kingdom offers an electronic visa for foreign visitors to attend sports events and concerts. Geographically, there is enough evidence that Saudi Arabia is located in Asia since it is bordered by eight other countries that are within the continent of Asia. Following the amalgamation of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd, the new state was named al-Mamlakah al-ʿArabīyah as-Saʿūdīyah (a transliteration of المملكة العربية السعودية in Arabic) by royal decree on 23 September 1932 by its founder, Abdulaziz bin Saud. There are 2,261 healthcare centers run by the MOH and 2,980 private health complexes. Animals such as gazelles, oryx, leopards and cheetahs[365] were relatively numerous until the 19th century, when extensive hunting reduced these animals almost to extinction. [81], On 29 January 2011, hundreds of protesters gathered in the city of Jeddah in a rare display of criticism against the city's poor infrastructure after deadly floods swept through the city, killing 11 people. [514] And at least one religious minority, the Ahmadiyya Muslims, had its adherents deported,[515] as they are legally banned from entering the country. 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. It is also allied to the Asian countries dominated by the Islam religion forming Islam oriented organizations. In 2018, the Al Jouf Agricultural Development Company received a certificate of merit from The Guinness World Records for the largest modern olive plantation in the world. Arabia underwent an extreme environmental fluctuation in the Quaternary that led to profound evolutionary and demographic changes. [201] Families of someone unlawfully killed can choose between demanding the death penalty or granting clemency in return for a payment of diyya (blood money), by the perpetrator. Saudi Arabia is considered an "energy superpower". [631], Saudi Arabia has a life expectancy of 74.99 years (73.79 for males and 76.61 for females) according to the latest data for the year 2018 from the World Bank. [88] The vassals of Ormuz, the Shia Jarwanid dynasty came to rule eastern Arabia in the 14th century. [290] Another documentary by Bryan Fogel, The Dissident, which excavated a web of deceit behind the murder, was to be released on the same day that marked the second death anniversary of Khashoggi. United Arab Emirates 7. 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 population density is 12 people per square kilometer. Saudi Arabia is a sovereign state that is located in West Asia on the Arabian Peninsula. The country exports wheat, dates, dairy products, eggs, fish, poultry, fruits, vegetables, and flowers to markets around the world. [617] The Tatweer program is reported to have a budget of approximately US$2 billion and focuses on moving teaching away from the traditional Saudi methods of memorization and rote learning towards encouraging students to analyze and problem-solve. As of October 2018, Saudi Arabia is the largest economy in the Middle East and the 18th largest in the world. [278] 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. These rock engravings date back more than 8,000 years, making them the earliest depictions of dogs in the world. [143] As mentioned earlier, in 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. It borders Jordan on the north, Iraq on the north and north-east, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates on the east, Oman on the south and south-east, and Yemen on the south, with the Persian Gulf to its north-east and the Red Sea to its west. [281][282], Tensions have escalated between Saudi Arabia and its allies after the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi from the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. These include Ghazi Algosaibi, Abdelrahman Munif, Turki al-Hamad and Rajaa al-Sanea. From 2016 onwards, the focus of the ministry was on reforming healthcare across the Kingdom, improving the standards and procedures. As of 2012, Saudi Arabia has a population of approximately 26.5 million people. With the help of the Ikhwan, the Kingdom of Hejaz was conquered in 1924–25, and on 10 January 1926, Ibn Saud declared himself King of Hejaz. Saudi Arabian cuisine is similar to that of the surrounding countries in the Arabian Peninsula and the wider Arab world, and has influenced and been influenced by Turkish, Indian, Persian, and African food. [143], Censorship has limited the development of Saudi literature, although several Saudi novelists and poets have achieved critical and popular acclaim in the Arab world—albeit generating official hostility in their home country. [249][250][251][252][253][254] In February 2019, Crown Prince Mohammad defended China's Xinjiang re-education camps for Uyghur Muslims,[255][256] saying "China has the right to carry out anti-terrorism and de-extremisation work for its national security. Kuwait 4. The WHO had earlier classified three Saudi Arabian cities, Ad Diriyah, Jalajil, and Al-Jamoom as “Healthy city”, as part of the WHO Healthy Cities Program. [3] Other estimates are 30%[425] or 33%[426]), As recently as the early 1960s, Saudi Arabia's slave population was estimated at 300,000. [265], 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. It would be the first time the Gulf nation would be hosting an F1 race as one of 23 grand prix in the busiest calendar ever. This was after he performed a concert attended by more than 10,000 people in the heritage site north-west of Riyadh. [303] Indeed, Osama bin Laden and 15 out of the 19 9/11 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia;[304] in ISIL-occupied Raqqa, in mid-2014, all 12 judges were Saudi. An investigation led by The Sunday Telegraph, exposed the condition of African migrants who were detained in Saudi Arabia allegedly for containing Covid-19 in the kingdom. [279] Saudi Arabia and its allies have criticized Qatar-based TV channel Al Jazeera and Qatar's relations with Iran. [24][25][26][27] The ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement within Sunni Islam has been called "the predominant feature of Saudi culture", with its global spread largely financed by the oil and gas trade. [107], Ibn Saud avoided involvement in the Arab Revolt, and instead continued his struggle with the Al Rashid. The first concerts in Riyadh for 25 years took place the following year. [citation needed], 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. [456] Saudi Arabia allows Christians to enter the country as foreign workers for temporary work, but does not allow them to practice their faith openly. [60] The culture is characterized as being one of the world's first to involve the widespread domestication of animals, particularly the horse, during the Neolithic period. [116] Neither entirely succeeded as Islamism continued to grow in strength. In the early 7th century, Muhammad united the various tribes of the peninsula and created a single Islamic religious polity. Arabia soon became a more politically peripheral region of the Muslim world as the focus shifted to the vast and newly conquered lands. Located on the Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia is bordered by the countries of Qatar, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Jordan, Iraq and Kuwait and two bodies of water: the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. [384] Matthew Simmons has suggested that Saudi Arabia is greatly exaggerating its reserves and may soon show production declines (see peak oil).[385]. More than 1200 species of fish[366] have been recorded in the Red Sea, and around 10 percent of these are found nowhere else. [358] The lowest recorded temperature to date, −12.0 °C (10.4 °F), was measured in Turaif. "They are not funding terrorism. The State of Lihyan: A New Perspective – p. 192, Rohmer, J. [59], In the Neolithic period, prominent cultures such as Al-Magar, whose center lay in modern-day southwestern Najd flourished. [509] Shia also face systematic discrimination in employment, education, the justice system according to Human Rights Watch. [615] This radical teaching takes place in Saudi funded mosques and madrasas across the Islamic world from Morocco to Pakistan to Indonesia. [230][231] However, the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States became strained and have witnessed major decline during the last years of the Obama administration,[232][233][234] 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,[235][236] and CIA used Saudi bases for drone assassinations in Yemen. Over two million individuals have been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, and as of April, 14 th 2020, there were over 5000 confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia (SA). [443], Virtually all Saudi citizens are Muslim[445] (officially, all are), and almost all Saudi residents are Muslim. The Kingdom has, however, stepped up fruit and vegetable production, by improving both agricultural techniques and the roads that link farmers with urban consumers. Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah (Arabic: مكة المكرمة ‎, romanized: Makkat al-Mukarramah, lit. The film was based on the 2018 murder of Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi authorities. [76] In antiquity, Gulf of Aqaba used to be called Gulf of Lihyan. As stated by Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, director of the German Marshall Fund's Ankara office "Turkey is maintaining a very delicate balance in its relations with Saudi Arabia. [316] On 20 October 2010, the US State Department notified Congress of its intention to make the biggest arms sale in American history—an estimated $60.5 billion purchase by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. [148] The king is also the prime minister, and presides over the Council of Ministers of Saudi Arabia and Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia. "[306] Former CIA director James Woolsey described it as "the soil in which Al-Qaeda and its sister terrorist organizations are flourishing. [112], By 1976, Saudi Arabia had become the largest oil producer in the world. After becoming one of the first nations to ratify the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2005, it plans to reduce tobacco use from 12.7% in 2017, to 5% in 2030. [575], In February 2017, Saudi Arabia appointed its first woman to head the Saudi Stock Exchange. The Bani Khalid tribe later revolted against them in the 17th century and took control. [29] The kingdom is categorized as a World Bank high-income economy with a very high Human Development Index[30] and is the only Arab country to be part of the G-20 major economies. [589], In April 2018, the first public cinema opened in Saudi Arabia after a ban of 35 years, with plans to have more than 2,000 screens running by 2030. [14], The territory that now constitutes Saudi Arabia was the site of several ancient cultures and civilizations. FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP/Getty Images. After years of comparatively modest engagement with the countries of East Africa, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is today putting in motion and ambitious strategy for … Top 100 largest countries by area. In June 2014, the Council of Ministers approved a law that gives the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage the means to protect Saudi Arabia's ancient relics and historic sites. [144], By custom, all males of full age have a right to petition the king directly through the traditional tribal meeting known as the majlis. [31], The state has attracted criticism for a variety of reasons, including its role in the Yemeni Civil War, alleged sponsorship of Islamic terrorism, failure to adopt adequate measures against human trafficking and its poor human rights record, which has been characterized by the excessive and often extrajudicial use of capital punishment, state-sponsored discrimination against religious minorities and atheists, and antisemitism, and its strict interpretation of Shari'a law. [117], In 1980, Saudi Arabia bought out the American interests in Aramco. [399] The deal raised more than initially planned and was the first time the PIF had incorporated loans and debt instruments into its funding. [259], The consequences of the 2003 invasion and the Arab Spring led to increasing alarm within the Saudi monarchy over the rise of Iran's influence in the region. Midian, Moab and Edom: The History and Archaeology of Late Bronze and Iron Age Jordan and North-West Arabia p. 163. [81], 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. 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. Saudi Arabia maintains a list of sectors in which foreign investment is prohibited, but the government plans to open some closed sectors such as telecommunications, insurance, and power transmission/distribution over time. Saudi Arabia wants Bangladesh to give passports to 54,000 stateless Rohingya refugees who have lived in the kingdom for decades. However, experts such as Joan Oates had the opportunity to see the Ubaid period sherds in eastern Arabia and consequently conclude that the sherds date to the last two phases of the Ubaid period (period three and four), while a handful of examples could be classified roughly as either Ubaid 3 or Ubaid 2.