The King of Saudi Arabia issued a decree authorizing women to obtain a driver's license. Before that, women were forbidden to drive a car. The king ruled that the decree should enter into force by June 2018.
A special commission will be created, consisting of representatives of the ministries of the interior, finance, labor and social development, it must submit its recommendations within 30 days.
The Saudi state news agency reports that "the royal decree regulates traffic rules, including the issuance of drivers' licenses to men and women on an equal basis".
The decree says that the new rules on women driving "must comply with the rules of Sharia," but at the moment it is not clear what this means.
The campaign for the right of Saudi women to get behind the wheel of a car has been going on for many years, but against this "innovation" traditionally conservative theologians. This is reported by the BBC Ukrainian Service.