May 22, 2013
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The week's top five must-sees,
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Description
Saudi Arabia, officially known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is the largest Arab state in Western Asia by land area and the second-largest in the Arab world. It is bordered by Jordan and Iraq to the north, Kuwait to the northeast, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates to the east, Oman to the southeast, Yemen in the south, the Red Sea to the west and Persian Gulf to the east. Its population is estimated to consist of 16 million citizens and an additional 9 million registered foreign expatriates and 2 million illegal immigrants.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded by Abdul-Aziz bin Saud in 1932, although the conquests which eventually led to the creation of the Kingdom began in 1902 when he captured Riyadh, the ancestral home of his family, the House of Saud, referred to in Arabic as Al Saud. The Saudi Arabian government has been an absolute monarchy since its inception, and it describes itself as being Islamic. Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and the kingdom is sometimes called "the Land of the Two Holy Mosques" in reference to Al-Masjid al-Haram, and Al-Masjid al-Nabawi, the two holiest places in Islam.
(via Freebase)
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![Egypt: One man sentenced in absentia for 2011 attacks on Israeli, Saudi embassies [IBA, Israel]](/images/image_cache/base-9400000/9400985/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=06318a7e9efcbff7bbb15f7c446a6006)
![Tunisians fear spread of Wahhabism [Syria TV, Syria]](/images/image_cache/base-9343000/9343723/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=2612a16b4d301504fb3d07356a4ef9a0)
![Demonstrations in Saudi Arabia's northwest in solidarity with prisoners [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-9182000/9182595/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=f7148140c8a89c1a4c66fba41d4ef8ff)
![Islamic states set to suspend Syria at Mecca summit [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-8742000/8742945/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=087f528517b89750c06abe26b97ed913)
![Amnesty International calls on Bahrain to free prisoners of conscience after 'travesty of justice' [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-8591000/8591355/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=336ec2add37d761c88b3405e1aedd5c8)
![Thousands of Saudis demand retribution for slain activist [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-8415000/8415837/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=18d70ff4fd823d287238fea0648edd93)
![Bahrain's pro-democracy activists escalate mobilization against US-Saudi interference [Al-Alam, Iran]](/images/image_cache/base-8363000/8363283/thumbnail.width=304,height=171,grow=1,crop=center.jpg?sig=8a6fcaa9e143b761b548edf94232f0d8 "Riot police detain anti-government protesters from the village of Bani-Jamra, west of Manama August 2, 2012: REUTERS/Stringer")
