These contradictions produced tensions. Educated Saudis (many trained abroad) often chafed against social restrictions. Women's movements demanded greater rights. The 1979 seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca by religious extremists temporarily challenged the regime. The September 11 attacks of 2001 (15 of 19 hijackers were Saudi citizens) embarrassed the kingdom internationally. The Arab Spring uprisings of 2010-2012 prompted Saudi rulers to fear domestic instability.

In recent years Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (effectively ruling since 2017) has pursued cautious social liberalization while tightening political control. Women received the right to drive in 2018. Public entertainment expanded. Restrictions on women's guardianship were eased. The religious police's powers were curtailed. At the same time, political dissidents (including the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered in 2018 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul) have been persecuted with new severity. The Saudi case shows that tradition-modernization tensions are continuously renegotiated.

VII. Religious Fundamentalism Worldwide

Religious fundamentalist movements have grown in many traditions in recent decades. While the Iranian Revolution is the most dramatic case, fundamentalist movements exist in Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, and other faiths. Maria should recognize fundamentalism as a global phenomenon, not specifically associated with any one religion.