Saudi Arabia among top violators of religious freedom: US govt. body

A US government commission has designated Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as one of the world’s “worst violators” of religious freedom, citing the Riyadh regime’s discrimination against Shia minorities, non-Muslims, women and prisoners of conscience.

A US government commission has designated Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as one of the world’s “worst violators” of religious freedom, citing the Riyadh regime’s discrimination against Shia minorities, non-Muslims, women and prisoners of conscience.

In its 2019 report released on Monday, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) listed Saudi Arabia in its tier one category of the states which merit designation as a “country of particular concern” or CPC.

The US State Department first designated Saudi Arabia as a CPC in 2004, but it has maintained an indefinite waiver for Riyadh since 2006.

The USCIRF recommended that the US State Department re-designate the kingdom as a CPC under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA).

“Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia continue to face discrimination in education, employment, and the judiciary, and lack access to senior positions in the government and military,” the survey said.

It also noted that during a USCIRF visit to Saudi Arabia’s mainly Shia-pupulated Eastern Province, certain Shia Muslims had reported harassment and invasions of privacy by the regime’s forces.