For the first time in 70 years: Saudi Arabia opens its first liquor store

A liquor store has opened in Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than 70 years. The move was another sign of social liberalization in the previously ultraconservative kingdom, which is a holy place for Muslims. The Associated Press writes about this, citing an unnamed diplomat.

Although access to the store in Riyadh is limited to non-Muslim diplomats, the store’s appearance dovetails with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to make the kingdom attractive for tourism and business, according to the publication. These steps fit into its ambitious plans to gradually wean the country’s economy from dependence on crude oil.

The store is located near a supermarket in Riyadh’s diplomatic district. The diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity about the socially sensitive issue in Saudi Arabia, described his visit to the store, likening it to luxury duty-free shopping at a major international airport.

According to the diplomat, the store sells alcoholic beverages, including liquor, wine and currently only two types of beer. Visitors are asked to present their diplomatic ID cards and place their mobile phones in special bags in order to shop.

At the same time, Saudi officials declined to comment upon a request from journalists regarding the store’s opening.

But the store’s opening coincided with the publication of new rules on the sale of alcohol to diplomats in the kingdom by Arab News, an English-language newspaper owned by the state-owned Saudi Research and Media Group.

The newspaper article explained that these rules were aimed at “limiting the uncontrolled import of certain goods and alcoholic beverages within the scope of diplomatic cargo.” The rules came into force on January 22.

For a long time, diplomats had the privilege of importing alcoholic beverages into the kingdom through a special service for use for diplomatic purposes.

Alcohol ban in Saudi Arabia: what we know

Please note that drinking alcohol is considered against Islamic injunctions and is prohibited. Saudi Arabia remains one of the few countries in the world to completely ban alcohol, similar to its neighbor Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates’ city of Sharjah.

In the 1950s, King Abdulaziz, the founder of the Saudi Arabian monarchy, introduced a ban on alcohol after an incident in 1951. Prince Mishari, one of the king’s sons, accidentally killed British Vice Consul Cyril Usman with a gun in the city of Jeddah while he was drunk.

Let us recall that world oil prices fell by more than 1% on Monday, January 8, due to a sharp drop in the cost of Saudi Arabia, the leading exporter of the global market, and the increase in production of the Petroleum Export Organization. Countries (OPEC).