Saudi Arabia being the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and as the birthplace of Islam is the most important country of the Islamic world, and the world community is keenly watching the decisions being taken by the 31-year old Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS), who has been given sweeping powers by his octogenarian father – King Salman.
The decisions taken recently by the budding leader will change the outlook of the ultraconservative kingdom and can lead to an unpredictable situation. It is difficult to believe that the society will digest all decisions, and at the same time it is not easy to foretell what kind of reaction they will trigger.
Under the policy decisions announced in the near past, women will be allowed to drive after a few months. Similarly, women will also have permission after some months to attend sports events at stadiums in the kingdom’s three major cities: Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam. Public cinemas would also be allowed in the kingdom for the first time in over 35 years, and that the first ones would likely to open in March 2018.
Cinemas were banned in the early 1980s under pressure from the Saudi society.
