Last year, it found myself lucky enough to spend one month, the ramadan one, in the city of Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia officially known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is probably the hardest country to get into. KSA do not issue any tourism visa except for the hajj pilgrimage to the holy city - Mecca. There are around 10milion muslims that visit KSA every year.
Needless to say Saudi Arabia is the birthplace and spiritual home of Islam, and it also called the "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 ultra-conservative Wahhabism religious movement within Sunni Islam has been called "the predominant feature of Saudi culture", with its global spreading largely financed by the oil and gas trade.
Now let me share you some interesting facts about Saudi Arabia, so you ll better understand the life in this unique country of 2016:
1. About 100 camels are sold in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia every day.
2. Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world without a river.
Saudi Arabia is the 13th-largest country in the world, and the second-largest in the Arab world — behind Algeria. Ninety-five percent of the country is considered a desert or semidesert, and it has the largest sand desert on earth.
Water is scarce and extremely valuable in Saudi Arabia. Aquifers are major sources of water in Saudi Arabia. They are vast underground reservoirs of water. Another major source of water is the sea. This is done through desalination, a process that produces potable water from brackish seawater.
3. Saudi Arabia is the only country where women are forbidden to drive or to cycle.
Also, until 2011, Saudi Arabia was the last country in the world to deny votes to women (except Brunei, where they deny votes to everyone). That year, King Abdullah ruled in favor of allowing women to vote in municipal elections. Women are also allowed to stand for office in the elections, but since they’re still not allowed to drive or cycle, it will need to be an office close to their house.
The first elections they were allowed to vote was held last year, in 2015.
4. Saudi Arabia is erecting the world's tallest building, which will be 1 kilometer tall.
The title of “World’s Tallest Building” has a history of being passionately sought. In 2018, that title will belong to Kingdom Tower, the centerpiece of a new city being built on Saudi Arabia’s coast. Kingdom Tower is set to be the first building to reach more than a kilometer (3,280 ft) into the air and will include a hotel, observatory, and office space—as well as some apartments for those seeking a view.For comparison, the One World Trade Center in New York, which is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, stands at 541 meters (1,775 ft), just over half the intended height of Kingdom Tower. Only China is coming close at the moment. The tower probably won’t be surpassed for some time. As one analyst describes it, the 1,000 meters of Kingdom Tower is currently “the limits of what engineering can do.”
5. Last year, Saudi Arabia executed 158 people - the highest number in two decades
In 2015, the Gulf state executed 158 people, the highest number in two decades, according to Human Rights Watch. The executions represent a 75 per cent increase from the previous year, when 90 people were killed by the state. Saudi Arabia is one of the few countries which still stages public executions, enforcing a strict interpretation of Sharia. The death penalty is applied in a wide range of cases, including apostasy and witchcraft.
A large number of these executions are carried out by beheading, but at the start of 2013, Saudi Arabia was considering an alternative method because of a shortage of swordsmen. Executioners use a traditional scimitar and aim for beheading in one go. The shortage of these swordsmen has led to them regularly turning up late to public executions. A switch to firing squad is likely to be the chosen solution.
6. The magic police of KSA
It is illegal in Saudi Arabia to practice any form of sorcery or magic. The Saudis have a police unit set up specifically for catching witches, and the people they catch end up in pretty serious trouble. Two maids were sentenced to a decade in prison and a thousand lashes each for practicing magic in their employer’s house. The evidence included talismans found in their bedroom.They actually got off pretty easy. Sorcery is a capital offense, and people have been beheaded for practicing magic. The powers they expect from their witches aren’t subtle—one cleric says, “Some magicians may ride a broom and fly in the air.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, Harry Potter is banned in he country. Over 500 people have been prosecuted for practicing magic since 2009. Due to Saudi Arabia’s loose legal code, it essentially falls on the judge to decide if sorcery has been performed and if the offending party deserves to be killed.
7. Diyya in Saudi Arabia or buying innocence
Diyya, commonly translated as “blood money,” is a system for criminals to compensate their victims’ families financially. Doing so allows the person that committed the crime to be let off from normal criminal justice. It’s a formalized way of buying one’s freedom. Diyya even applies in cases of murder. The country’s judicial authority sets how much money should be paid for a crime and kicked prices up a notch in 2011. You now need to pay around $106,000 to avoid punishment for premeditated murder. We should mention that that number is for killing a man—you can halve the amount and get away with killing a woman. And if you think you may commit a murder in Saudi Arabia in the near future, you might want to consider diyya insurance, which is exactly what it sounds like. If you commit a crime and have to pay the family, your insurance will cover it.
Before ending this one I`ll let you in deera square of Riyadh, beautifully decorated for Eid al-Fitr (end of ramadan) celebration.
It is also known as Justice Square or Chop Chop Square and this is the place where every Friday, after the prayers, police clear the area to make way for the public execution to take place.
