Are women now allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia and why were they previously banned?
In an historic moment, women in the Middle East kingdom are now legally allowed to get behind the wheel
A BAN on women driving in ultra-conservative Saudi Arabia has been lifted - decades after it was first introduced.
King Salman issued a royal order in 2017 that now allows women to get behind the wheel following years of protests.
Why were women banned from driving in Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia had a blanket ban on women driving, with those caught behind the wheel detained.
The strict rules in the Islamic country were enforced despite neither Islamic or Saudi law explicitly prohibiting women from driving.
The ban had the backing of powerful ultraconservative clerics who argued such acts would corrupt society and lead to sin.
One cleric even claiming getting behind the wheel could damage women's ovaries and damage fertility.
For decades women drivers have faced arrest and harassment with several high profile protests.
In 1990 a major protest saw 50 women drivers travel through the streets of the country's capital, Riyadh.
They were arrested and lost their passports and jobs.
In 2011 a woman was sentenced to 10 lashes for driving - although the late King Abdullah overturned the sentence.
Is it now legal for women to drive in Saudi Arabia?
A royal order in 2017 decreed that both women and men should be issued driving licences.
The change came into force in June 2018.
Prince Khaled bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Washington and the king's son, said that letting women drive was a "huge step forward" adding "society is ready".
He told US reporters: "This is the right time to do the right thing."
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Prince Khaled confirmed that women will not need the permission of a male guardian to get a driving licence.
But despite the reforms, Saudi women remain largely subject to the whims of men due to guardianship laws, which bar them from obtaining a passport, travelling abroad or marrying without the consent of a male relative