Woman Defying Saudi Driving Ban Killed in Car Accident

VOA Breaking News (Voice of America)
November 21, 2010 at 4:45 pm

A Saudi police official says a car driven by a young woman in defiance of the kingdom’s ban on female drivers has overturned in the capital, killing her and three of her 10 female passengers.

Riyadh police official Fawaz al-Mouman says the accident happened Saturday night when the driver, who was in her twenties, was driving a four-wheel-drive vehicle in an open area often used by young men for car races. He says the vehicle overturned, killing four of the female occupants and leaving seven others injured.

Saudi Arabia follows an ultraconservative branch of Islam that bans women from driving and imposes other restrictions on their activities.

Women’s rights campaigners have called on Saudi King Abdullah to lift the driving ban.

Some information in this story was provided by AP and AFP.