Exclusive: Saudi Arabia prepares to open first alcohol store for diplomats

[Muji.Iqbal]

Exclusive: Saudi Arabia prepares to open first alcohol store for diplomats​

By Aziz El Yaakoubi
January 24, 20248:55 AM ESTUpdated 6 hours ago

A view shows vehicles driving on a street in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 16, 2021. REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights, opens new tab
RIYADH, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia is preparing to open its first alcohol store in the capital Riyadh which will serve exclusively non-Muslim diplomats, according to a source familiar with the plans and a document.
Customers will have to register via a mobile app, get a clearance code from the foreign ministry, and respect monthly quotas with their purchases, said the document, which was seen by Reuters.
The move is a milestone in the kingdom's efforts, led by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to open the ultra-conservative Muslim country for tourism and business as drinking alcohol is forbidden in Islam.
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It is also part of wider plans known as Vision 2030 to build a post-oil economy.
The new store is located in Riyadh's Diplomatic Quarter, a neighbourhood where embassies and diplomats reside, and will be "strictly restricted" to non-Muslims, the document said.
It was unclear if other non-Muslim expatriates will have access to the store. Millions of expatriates live in Saudi Arabia but most of them are Muslim workers from Asia and Egypt.
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A source familiar with the plans said the store is expected to open in the coming weeks.
Saudi Arabia has strict laws against drinking alcohol which can be punishable by hundreds of lashes, deportation, fines, or imprisonment and expatriates also face deportation. As part of the reforms, whipping has largely been replaced by jail sentences.
Alcohol has been available only through diplomatic mail or on the black market.
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The government on Wednesday confirmed reports in state-controlled media that it was imposing new restrictions on alcohol imports within diplomatic consignments.
Its Center of International Communication (CIC) said the new regulations had been introduced to counter the illicit trade of alcohol goods and products received by diplomatic missions.
"This new process will continue to grant and ensure that all diplomats of non-Muslim embassies have access to these products in specified quotas," the CIC said in a statement to Reuters.

The statement did not address the planned alcohol store but said the new framework respected international diplomatic conventions.
Saudi Arabia, which was relatively closed off for decades, has in recent years relaxed strict social codes, such as segregating men and women in public places and requiring women to wear all-covering black robes, or abayas.
Prince Mohammed's tightening grip on power has been accompanied by changes which included opening the country for non-religious tourism, concerts and allowing women to drive, as well as a crackdown on dissent and political rivals.
Vision 2030 also includes developing local industries and logistics hubs, and aims at adding hundreds of thousands of jobs for Saudi nationals.
Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi; Editing by Angus MacSwan
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-prepares-open-first-alcohol-store-diplomats-2024-01-24/

 

[safriz]

First Alcohol store lol
The country of Saudi Arabia was created by Alexander the homosexual who had a fondness for an alcoholic tipple and young Arab boys .


News for the gullible fools .

Any historical evidence of your statement?
Or just the general hate against Arabs?

 

[Oscar]

Flame posts and general hatred will get a serious boot

 

[Oscar]

On topic: this is actually a smart move because there is a lot of smuggling w.r.t Alcohol and drugs within the Kingdom so this allows for better regulation especially when it comes to non muslim expatriates.

 

[Mr X]

Let me tell you from my first-hand experience.

Some of you probably know that Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are connected through this highway.

King Fahd Causeway - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Alcohol is legal in Bahrain so a lot of people from Saudi Arabia travel to Bahrain to consume alcohol. You will be surprised to see so many people in Bahrain who are only visiting to attend bars and licensed shops.

So it is not like nobody drinks in Saudi Arabia. A lot of Arabs that I have met in the UK, the majority of them consume alcohol in my opinion. It is already available in Saudi Arabia as some of our PDF members also drink alcohol while living in Saudi Arabia. So I take this as a first step to make it legal and earn money from this industry.

 

[Art Eralith]

I don't see the controversy in this tbh.

 

[uhuru]

Any historical evidence of your statement?
Or just the general hate against Arabs?

Liquor is available. I saw it at a few top families home on open display.

 

[uhuru]

On topic: this is actually a smart move because there is a lot of smuggling w.r.t Alcohol and drugs within the Kingdom so this allows for better regulation especially when it comes to non muslim expatriates.

if you go to the southern side of KSA. everything is available. from hashish to liquor to hard drugs.

 

[Muji.Iqbal]

lol, I do not drink alcohol since its prohibited in Islam

Nor do I smoke cigarettes or Hookah.

 

[VCheng]

Let me tell you from my first-hand experience.

Some of you probably know that Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are connected through this highway.

King Fahd Causeway - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Alcohol is legal in Bahrain so a lot of people from Saudi Arabia travel to Bahrain to consume alcohol. You will be surprised to see so many people in Bahrain who are only visiting to attend bars and licensed shops.

So it is not like nobody drinks in Saudi Arabia. A lot of Arabs that I have met in the UK, the majority of them consume alcohol in my opinion. It is already available in Saudi Arabia as some of our PDF members also drink alcohol while living in Saudi Arabia. So I take this as a first step to make it legal and earn money from this industry.

Fermented alcoholic drinks have a long history in the region:

"Though written sources regarding alcoholic drinks before the early 7th century are scarce, literature concerning the early Muslims reveals a great deal of information about alcohol at the time of Prophet Muhammad. The Hadith collected by al-Bukhari, records a number of fermented drinks available in the Arabian Peninsula at that time. According to ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, “Intoxicants (khamr) are prepared from five things: raisins, dates, wheat, barley, or honey,” while Anas ibn Malik mentions wines made from at least four different kinds of dates.[1] In addition to declaring wine to be haram, Muhammad reportedly considered other cooked or fermented drinks such as tilā’ and naqir as inebriating and thus forbade the pressing of grapes and the drinking of pressed grape juice.[2] The early caliphs, however, distributed cooked wine (tilā’) to Muslim troops, and it was not until the reign of ‘Umar II that the caliph prohibited drinking such a drink.[3]"


From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wine_in_religious_communities_of_the_Middle_East

 

[Muji.Iqbal]

prohibited in Islam

Nor do I smoke cigarettes or Hookah.

Let me tell you from my first-hand experience.

Some of you probably know that Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are connected through this highway.

King Fahd Causeway - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Alcohol is legal in Bahrain so a lot of people from Saudi Arabia travel to Bahrain to consume alcohol. You will be surprised to see so many people in Bahrain who are only visiting to attend bars and licensed shops.

So it is not like nobody drinks in Saudi Arabia. A lot of Arabs that I have met in the UK, the majority of them consume alcohol in my opinion. It is already available in Saudi Arabia as some of our PDF members also drink alcohol while living in Saudi Arabia. So I take this as a first step to make it legal and earn money from this industry.

Yes, Non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia go to Bahrain or Emirates to drink alcohol. lol.

 

[indushek]

Badhai ho Arabi bhai logo ko, mast beer pe lena. Indian Beer brands should focus on this now, we are much closer so we can supply quickly. Nice business opportunity if tapped into

 

[uhuru]

Fermented alcoholic drinks have a long history in the region:

"Though written sources regarding alcoholic drinks before the early 7th century are scarce, literature concerning the early Muslims reveals a great deal of information about alcohol at the time of Prophet Muhammad. The Hadith collected by al-Bukhari, records a number of fermented drinks available in the Arabian Peninsula at that time. According to ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, “Intoxicants (khamr) are prepared from five things: raisins, dates, wheat, barley, or honey,” while Anas ibn Malik mentions wines made from at least four different kinds of dates.[1] In addition to declaring wine to be haram, Muhammad reportedly considered other cooked or fermented drinks such as tilā’ and naqir as inebriating and thus forbade the pressing of grapes and the drinking of pressed grape juice.[2] The early caliphs, however, distributed cooked wine (tilā’) to Muslim troops, and it was not until the reign of ‘Umar II that the caliph prohibited drinking such a drink.[3]"


From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wine_in_religious_communities_of_the_Middle_East

We have a very interesting notion on this here. A lot of ganja smokers say --- it is not mentioned so it is ok to consume.

 

[uhuru]

Yes, Non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia go to Bahrain or Emirates to drink alcohol. lol.

or lebanon. Anything goes there

 

[Oscar]

if you go to the southern side of KSA. everything is available. from hashish to liquor to hard drugs.

Aware of that - but there is an active effort from the kingdom to try and control it somehow instead of letting the criminal element have free reign