Until recently, women couldn't vote in the municipal elections at all, and could not sit on the advisory chamber, making Saudi Arabia the last country on earth to give women the vote. Ironically, camels were first imported into Australia from Arabia, India, and Afghanistan in the 19th century. Visit top-rated & … The only country that comes close is Israel at about 5.2 percent, and Russia after a huge military spending increase which reached 4.5 percent. Account active Here are 10 facts about human rights in Saudi Arabia. Rules like sexes need to remain separate in public, no dancing, and not allowing women out without their male guardian. Overall, this suggests that Texas is more productive than Saudi Arabia. Why? Sources: HSBC, The Washington Post, World Bank, Telegraph. A morally ambiguous protagonist with an awesome beard. As you might imagine, that many pilgrims in one place can cause serious problems, such as the 2015 stampede that killed and injured more than 2,000 people by some estimates. But Iraq has plans to upstage the Saudis, as it wants to build and even taller tower called The Bride, which will eclipse the Jeddah Tower by 500 feet. Despite the ever-growing pressure on Saudi Arabia to liberalize its legal system, executions and punishments have remained steady. Furthermore, because Saudi Arabia contains the two holy mosques, it considers having any pork inside the country desecration. The Wikitravel page for tourists going to Saudi Arabia should give an idea of how restrictive its laws are. See more on this topic Comments. Bookmark the permalink. The laws are strict and any sort of criticism or objection causes high penalty (even death). 5. – Source: World Bank. The capital, Riyadh, has a large camel market. Plus, Saudi Arabia has the 19th-largest GDP — but if Texas were its own country, it would have the 13th-largest GDP, just below Australia and right above Spain. Because of this enormous petroleum industry, more than 30 percent of Saudi Arabia's population is made up of foreign workers. Saudi Arabia possesses 22 percent of the world's total oil reserves, second only to Venezuela. As such, Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world without a river. List View | Expand View . Business Insider/Andy Kiersz, data from CIA World Factbook and US Census Bureau, dark times ahead for about half of the cartel's members, Iraq has plans to upstage the Saudis, as it wants to build and even taller tower, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The Kingdom faced criticism when it would not use the tents to house Syrian refugees fleeing the civil war in that country. Saudi Arabia's petroleum sector puts it at around $335.372 billion. The royalty's grip on the country would be the envy of any medieval court; King Salman's net worth is estimated to be more than $17 billion, and more than 7,000 princes bearing the family name are currently alive, with some estimates of the number of titled family members going as high as 30,000, and each one is allocated a job while more talented candidates are shunned due to not having the right last name. Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and is the site of the holiest places for Muslims – Mecca and Medina. Saudi Arabia and the United States have not agreed on support for Israel or engagement with Saudi Arabia's regional rival, Iran. 12. Saudi Arabia is an Arab country located in Western Asia. Located in southwest Asia (at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa), Saudi Arabia extends from the Red Sea in the west to the Arabian Gulf in the east. Check out the crazy facts about the saudi arabia. When we think about it, we start to appreciate some things we often take for granted in Saudi-Arabia. In an effort to diversify its economy — instead of only having a huge oil sector — Saudi Arabia is building "six economic cities" that are expected to add $150 billion to the country's GDP. Did you know that? TOP 10 NERD – NEW CHANNEL – FAN MAIL: P.O BOX # 14015 2408 Lakeshore Blvd W. Etobicoke, On M8V4A2. A large number of these executions are carried out by beheading, where executioners use a traditional scimitar to take off the head on one slice. Saudi Arabia banned Pokémon games and cards. Hence, the drop in oil prices has had a transformative impact on Saudi Arabia's as well as the entire GCC..." he added. Saudi Arabia was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1517 to the early 20th century when the Ottoman Empire collapsed. The 43-foot-high (13 meters) Kaaba, is Islam's holiest site in the Great Mosque of Mecca, Islam's most sacred mosque. So on this list, we will be talking about all the facts that you need to know about Saudi Arabia. Official name: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Capital city: Riyadh Population: 34,173,498 Area: 2,149,690 sq km Major languages: Arabic Time zone: UTC+3 (Arabia Standard Time) – Source: CIA World Fact Book Interesting facts about Saudi Arabia. And that could mean dark times ahead for about half of the cartel's members. The death penalty is commonly used in Saudi Arabia. For many people in the West, the country seems like an anachronism, where a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam is absolute law and women aren't allowed to drive, but also a place of great history and culture, the site of the yearly Hajj pilgrimage for millions of Muslims, and of course, massive oil wealth. Well over half the country's GDP comes from its lucrative oil industry. As well as Rub' al Khali in the south, also called the Empty Quarter, the largest contiguous sand desert on earth. Things like this make me miss Saudi Arabia, and it makes you realize how lucky we are to have them as a part of everyday life. Other death sentences include blasphemy (insulting God or the Prophet in any way), acts of homosexuality, and violent theft. Women are effectively banned from working outside the home in Saudi Arabia. Now for the camels, which are frequently sold in the Saudi capital of Riyadh and are used for carrying people or goods, and sometimes for racing. Moved Permanently. Well, it turns out that none of the sand in Saudi Arabia is viable for use in construction, so in order for them to build anything, they require special alluvial sand that is free of silica, which creates dust and can cause lung problems for workers when it's used in sandblasting. – Source: World Bank 2. 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