LADIES TO BE ALLOWED BEHIND THE WHEEL?

A group of Saudi women are to submit a petition to King Abdullah on Saudi national day next week in order to gain the right to be allowed to drive. However, despite the fact that the Committee of Demanders of Women's Right to Drive has taken such a step, local media reports suggest that there is little chance of the move succeeding.

The CDWRD is circulating the petition online and via email which highlights that there is no current law which bans women from driving, only that which states a woman must be accompanied by a legal guardian in public. The ban applies to foreign women residents as well as Saudi citizens.

According to The Guardian, conservative Islamic scholars argue that allowing women to drive would mean they might interact with non-related men such as police officers or car mechanics - and that would be the start of a slippery slope.

After coming to the throne in 2005 King Abdullah did say that women would be permitted to drive one day but he would not permit it against the will of his people.