Inside Saudi Arabia’s 'Care Homes': Weekly Floggings, Forced Confinement For 'Disobedient' Women

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Last Updated:May 28, 2025, 11:35 IST

The study said that determination person besides been aggregate instances of termination oregon attempted termination owed to the terrible conditions.

Activists contend that these facilities, established successful the 1960s, service arsenic a lesser-known instrumentality for the Saudi authorities to power and punish women. (File Image)

Saudi Arabia’s secretive “Dar al-Reaya" oregon “care homes" for women- officially described by officials arsenic shelters for “rehabilitation" of susceptible women- are being progressively exposed by testimonies gathered implicit the past six months. The Guardian reported that the accounts from erstwhile inmates and activists picture play floggings, forced spiritual teachings, and implicit isolation from the extracurricular world, painting a grim representation of “hellish" conditions. The study said that determination person besides been aggregate instances of termination oregon attempted termination owed to the terrible conditions, with women often held for years, incapable to permission without the support of a antheral guardian oregon family.

Women Lashed For Transgressions In Saudi Care Homes

Maryam Aldossari, a London-based Saudi activist, said, “A young miss oregon pistillate volition enactment successful determination for arsenic agelong arsenic it takes for her to judge the rules." Sarah Al-Yahia, who initiated a run to abolish these facilities, details harrowing experiences of strip-searches, virginity tests connected arrival, and forced sedation. She described them arsenic “prisons," wherever women are referred to by numbers, punished for not praying, and lashed for perceived transgressions similar associating with different women. Yahia, surviving successful exile, revealed her ain begetter utilized Dar al-Reaya arsenic a threat, highlighting the intolerable prime galore women look betwixt maltreatment astatine location and confinement.

Saudi Regime Punishing Women, Activists Say

Activists contend that these facilities, established successful the 1960s, service arsenic a lesser-known instrumentality for the Saudi authorities to power and punish women, straight contradicting the country’s publicized communicative of women’s empowerment, particularly arsenic it seeks planetary designation similar hosting the FIFA Men’s World Cup. They stress that portion immoderate women whitethorn person supportive families, galore unrecorded nether strictures and endure silently, with the authorities allegedly enabling maltreatment done these institutions.

ALQST, a quality rights group, describes Dar al-Reaya facilities arsenic notorious tools for enforcing sex norms. Nadyeen Abdulaziz, their campaigns officer, urged the Saudi authorities to abolish these discriminatory practices and found genuine shelters that support alternatively than punish victims of abuse.

What Saudi Government Has Said On Care Homes

In response, a Saudi authorities spokesperson maintained that these are specialized attraction facilities for susceptible groups, categorically rejecting claims of enforced confinement, mistreatment, oregon coercion. The spokesperson stated, “These are not detention centres, and immoderate allegation of maltreatment is taken seriously… Women are escaped to permission astatine immoderate time… with nary request of support from a guardian oregon household member."

Location :

Saudi Arabia

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News world Inside Saudi Arabia’s 'Care Homes': Weekly Floggings, Forced Confinement For 'Disobedient' Women