The beauties and strangeties of Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia







The following is taken from a Saudi Tourism website...

Stay safe

Homosexuality is punishable by death.

Drug smuggling is punishable by death.

Adultery is punishable by death if you are married, and lashes if not.

Theft is punishable by amputation.

Apostasy is punishable by death.

These things being said, Saudi Arabia is generally a safe country. However, there is currently a low-level insurgency which targets foreigners in general and Westerners in particular. It is prudent not to draw attention to oneself. Foreigners should register their presence with their embassy or consulate. Emergency alert systems using e-mail and cell phone messages are maintained by many governments for their guest workers.

While crime is low by Western standards, a certain background level of nonviolent opportunistic theft does exist. Locking doors and keeping valuables on one's person is called for. Violations of Saudi law can bring a visitor into contact with the local police and justice systems. Corporal and capital punishment are both used against both Saudi and other nationals. Embassies can provide only limited help in these situations.

In addition to more mundane violations, other crimes include not observing the Ramadan fast, insulting Islam, adultery, apostasy and (non-Islamic) preaching.