Dissident Spotlight: Rania al-Assal
Rania al-Assal is an Egyptian journalist who disappeared during her pilgrimage to Mecca. Saudi Arabia released her almost a year after seizing her.
Before she arrived at Mecca for her pilgrimage, Rania Al-Assal wrote a scathing question for Saudi officials on X:
"Did anyone from the family of Bani Saud (the kingdom's ruling family) build the Kaaba, or even participate in the destruction of the idols around it, or even its liberation[?]"
Among the gates to Mecca are King Abdulaziz Gate and King Fahd Gate, both named for prominent kings of Saudi Arabia. Al-Assal took issue with worldly kings far removed from the mythology of Mecca adding their names to the holiest city in the Muslim world.
On Feb. 11, 2023, Al-Assal disappeared. She wasn’t formally arrested, sentenced, or charged with a crime. Al-Assal didn’t reemerge until January 22, 2024, when she was finally released.
Her X account is no longer available, but the lesson she has for people in other countries counting on religion to bind them together is everlasting.
Politics Beats Religion
In theocratic countries, the primary victims of the regime are people who share the regime’s religion. Saudi women who have faced imprisonment and some who have died fighting for the right to drive were practicing Muslims. The primary victims of Europe’s wars of religion were different kinds of Christians.
Christian Nationalists in the United States today are pushing for the secular government to operate based on a narrow reading of Christian theology. Making the Bible the basis of American law won’t actually make the Bible the country’s governing document. The reading of the small group of Christians who seize power would decide how Old Testament justice is applied.
As the Christian right enjoys a moment of influence, it’s worth remembering that sharing a religious identity isn’t enough for political religion. One’s religious beliefs must lead to the same political beliefs as those in power for a chance of remaining safe.