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| Saudi's strict modesty laws even apply to women shoppers |
They lived in a fabulous palace and every year would go on two long holidays with their friends.
In winter they would ski at an exclusive resort in the French Alps. In summer they went to parties in Italy and Greece. Then, abruptly, the fairytale ended.
For the four sisters were part of the Saudi Arabian royal family and they had made the mistake of crossing the patriarchy that rules one of the most oppressive states in the world.
Now, instead of the carefree existence they once enjoyed as children of King Abdullah, they are trapped in a gilded cage.
The heavy metal gate that serves as the main entrance to the beachfront villa they occupy in the grounds of the royal palace in the Saudi capital Riyadh is padlocked at all times.
Guards in a watchtower keep them under observation 24 hours a day helped by the glare of spotlights after dark. And escape by sea is made impossible by underwater nets and concrete obstacles.
When the women do leave the compound to shop for food it is only with the permission of a half-brother who ensures their every move is monitored by a squad of plain-clothes security men.
There appears to be no respite from this house arrest as their London- based mother Alanoud Alfayez, distrustful of promises to grant her daughters’ freedom in exchange for her return, refuses to submit to the clutches of her ex-husband.
The plight of the Riyadh Four has come to light after a decade following publication of a plaintive email from two of the victims, Sahar, 42 and Jawaher, 38, and a plea by their mother to a UN agency, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. » | Dominic Midgley | Monday, March 10, 2014
