Saudi Arabia allows women to join military
Saudi Arabia has for the first time opened applications for women to join its military.
Women
have until Thursday to apply for positions with the rank of soldier in
the provinces of Riyadh, Mecca, al-Qassim and Medina.
The roles do not appear to involve combat, but will instead give women the opportunity to work in security.
A list of 12 requirements says hopefuls must be Saudi citizens, aged between 25 and 35, and have a high-school diploma.
The
women and their male guardians - usually a husband, father, brother or
son - must also have a place of residence in the same province as the
job's location.
The decision to recruit female soldiers is one of many reforms
enhancing women's rights introduced in recent months in the conservative
Muslim kingdom.
King Salman has decreed that women will be
permitted to drive from June, while women spectators were allowed to
attend football matches from last month.
However, human rights activists say Saudi Arabia's discriminatory male guardianship system remains intact despite government pledges to abolish it.
Under
the system, adult women must obtain permission to travel, marry or
leave prison. They may be required to provide consent to work or access
healthcare.
Women are also separated from unrelated men and must
wear full-length robes known as "abayas" in public, as well as
headscarves if they are Muslims.
BBC
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