This nation is finally getting a ‘moderate’ version of Islam

Due to mostly religious values, the nation is so conservative that women faced arrest if they attempted to drive.

This is all changing according to the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has promised to return his country to “moderate Islam.”

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In his words, “We are simply reverting to what we followed — a moderate Islam open to the world and all religions. 70% of the Saudis are younger than 30, honestly, we won’t waste 30 years of our life combating extremist thoughts, we will destroy them now and immediately.”

Axios reports that the soon to be king, also known as MBS, made this startling declaration before a gathering of the world’s wealthiest investors and powerful political figures in Riyadh on October 24, 2017.

This investment conference was also where announced the launch of an ambitious $500bn (£381bn) independent economic zone involving Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt.

This announcement was met with surprise from most and scepticism from the rest.

Tom Barrack, the billionaire investor, told Axios’ Jonathan Swan that “It was beyond epic. I have been doing business in the region for 40 years and I could have never imagined what we experienced in Riyadh.”

Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador, said: “the Crown Prince is driving the reform toward a more open, progressive and modern Saudi Arabia, which ultimately is in everyone’s interests. It’s in everyone’s interests that MBS succeeds.”

Middle East expert, Elliott Abrams, was understandably doubtful. He said, “The reform plans are real, but implementation will be difficult. Is he really going to allow the open practice of Christianity in the Kingdom? … I certainly wish him well and think we should all do so. But given the strength of the Wahhabi establishment and the lack of preparedness of the population for the 21st century in terms of education and work skills, he has a real struggle.”

Speaking with the Guardian, Salman noted that the ultra-conservative state has been ‘not normal’ for past 30 years.

He said, “We are a G20 country. One of the biggest world economies. We’re in the middle of three continents. Changing Saudi Arabia for the better means helping the region and changing the world. So this is what we are trying to do here. And we hope we get support from everyone.

“What happened in the last 30 years is not Saudi Arabia. What happened in the region in the last 30 years is not the Middle East. After the Iranian revolution in 1979, people wanted to copy this model in different countries, one of them is Saudi Arabia. We didn’t know how to deal with it. And the problem spread all over the world. Now is the time to get rid of it.”

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The crown prince’s comments come after women have just been allowed to drive. This change that can be attributed to his Vision 2030 for “a tolerant country with Islam as its constitution and moderation as its method.”

This change has been met with some resistance from Saudi Arabia’s highest religious council, the Majlis al-Ifta’ al-A’ala.

They warn that the removal of the driving ban would “provoke a surge in prostitution, pornography, homosexuality and divorce”.

The new decree will go into effect on June 24, 2018.