Permanent residency relief for foreign wives of Saudis

September 10, 2013

Jeddah, Sep 10: Foreign mothers of Saudi children will be given permanent residence in the Kingdom without sponsors, the Council of Ministers said on Monday. They will also receive educational and health services like other Saudis.

The Cabinet, chaired by Crown Prince Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, made this important decision upon the recommendation of Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal.

The decision was aimed at encouraging non-Saudi wives of Saudis to stay in the Kingdom with their children. The Cabinet said that the state shall bear the woman’s residence fees.

“She shall be allowed to work for others in the private sector and she shall be considered part of Saudization process,” said Culture and Information Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja.

The Cabinet deleted Para 3 of the Cabinet's decision No. 1215 dated 8/11/1392 regarding non-Saudi widows with Saudi children, which stipulates that her son “be her sponsor according to Iqama regulations.”

It also deleted Para 5 of the same decision, which states that “the sponsor undertakes paying living expenses if she cannot keep a job due to legal objection.” The non-Saudi mother of Saudi children shall be treated as a Saudi national in terms of general and university education, as well as medical treatment in government hospitals, the Cabinet said.

Saudis and expatriates have applauded the decision, saying it would solve problems facing many Saudi families.

“This decision should have been taken a long time ago,” said Mohammed Badahdah, assistant secretary-general of the World Assembly of Muslim Youth.

“A foreign mother of Saudi children should acquire permanent residency by default in order to bring peace of mind and stability to the family,” he told Arab News.“It is the right of the mother to stay with her children.”

Badahdah said that granting citizenship to these women should be decided by higher authorities, adding that Saudi Arabia has temporarily stopped giving citizenship to foreigners. “They used to consider applications of people who have gained the required points in terms of stay, education and family relations with Saudis,” he said.

Abdullah Bajubair thanked the government for the humane decision. He requested the king to consider granting citizenship to those who are born and brought up in the Kingdom and have lived in the country for several years.

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Syrian Town erupts after Israeli forces enter Beit Jinn; heavy casualties reported

News Network

November 28,2025

Several Syrians were killed and more than two dozen others injured in Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus, amid intensified incursions by the occupying regime since the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rule.

Syrian state TV reported that the casualties occurred during an overnight Israeli assault involving helicopters and drones on the town of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside. The attack followed an Israeli military unit’s entry into the town, where they were surrounded by local residents, leading to gunfire and direct confrontations.

According to the report, “The occupation army’s helicopters and artillery shelled Beit Jinn, located at the foothills of Mount Hermon, resulting in 13 martyrs and 25 injured civilians.” The broadcaster did not specify the full extent of damage.

Al-Ikhbariyah Syria confirmed that the shelling coincided with Israeli soldiers entering Beit Jinn, while artillery pounded surrounding areas. The broadcaster stated that the escalation began after local residents clashed with an Israeli patrol that had infiltrated the southern town and “kidnapped” three young men.

Following a two-hour exchange of heavy fire, Israeli forces withdrew and repositioned on the hill of Butt al-Warda at the town’s outskirts.

Israeli media acknowledged that six soldiers were wounded in the clashes—three of them seriously—describing the confrontation as a “sudden ambush” that forced the deployment of reserve units and air support to secure an exit route. No further details were provided.

The aggression has fueled renewed displacement from Beit Jinn, with residents fleeing to nearby villages amid increasingly frequent Israeli attacks.

The raid came just a day after Israeli troops carried out another ground incursion into Umm al-Luqas village in Quneitra province. According to SANA, an Israeli unit in four vehicles entered the village, raided several homes, and later withdrew.

Syria condemned the repeated incursions as violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement and UN resolutions, urging the international community to enforce compliance and pressure Israel to halt its operations and withdraw fully.

Israel has expanded its attacks across Syrian territory following the collapse of the Assad government last year. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly instructed his forces to push deeper into Syrian territory and seize strategic positions.

Meanwhile, critics say the HTS-led interim government’s inaction and growing normalization gestures toward Israel have emboldened Tel Aviv to intensify its military operations. HTS, formerly linked to al-Qaeda, seized control of Damascus last December, formally ending Assad’s rule.

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