Now, birth control debate in Saudi Arabia

November 24, 2014

Jeddah, Nov 24: So called experts have emphasized the need for population control to preserve the economic resources and urged the Council of Senior Islamic Scholars and the Shoura Council to express their opinion on the sensitive issue.

“People are afraid of talking about birth control in the Kingdom because of sensitivity and ignore the educational, economic and organizational dimensions of the issue,” said Fadhel Al-Bouainain, an economist.

“Families have to apply birth control in order to reduce expenses and provide better education and facilities to their children,” he said while describing the Kingdom’s population growth as the highest in the world.

He said birth control was essential to reduce pressure on the country’s infrastructure facilities, especially for health, education and housing. “Birth control should be a strategic objective,” he said.

According to the latest census, the Kingdom’s population has reached nearly 20 million. This means the population doubled during the last 15 years. “If the population grows at this rate, it would become one of the major obstacles that hinder the country’s economic growth,” Al-Bouainain said.

He said the Saudi economy is largely dependent on state revenues and not on population. The spending on education takes 25 percent of the general budget and 85 percent of this allocation goes to salaries for teachers and only 15 percent is set aside for development projects in the sector.

Mohammed Al-Senaidy, a consultant for maternity and children in Khamis Mushayt, urged the media to take up the issue of birth control. He noted the craze of some Saudi women to have more children, even when they suffer from various complications.

Sabah Zahar, a sociologist at Saudi-German Hospital, stressed the importance of birth control for reducing family expenditure. “It should become a culture of families and it is a good option for working women,” she said.

Awad Al-Qarni, a religious thinker, said Islam has approved birth control in certain situations. “Scholars should give their opinion on it,” he said.

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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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