Sixteen-Year-Old Girl Drinks Bleach to Avoid Arranged Marriage with 75-Year-Old Man in Saudi Arabia

The continued abuse of girls in arranged marriages in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries is a global scandal. This week, we have yet another glimpse into the nightmare faced by young girls. A girl known only as Shaikha drank a bottle of bleach in an attempted suicide to avoid an arranged marriage with a 75-year-old man.

Shaikha was brought by her father to the man when she was 13 years old and both men ignored her begging not to be forced into the marriage. It is unimaginable how a father could commit such a horrific act, but this is an all-too-common story coming out of this area, click here and here and here.

Notably, Sheikh Abdul Mohsin Al Obeikan, Shura Council member had denounced the marriage, but not on the basis that it was a 13-year-old girl and a 75-year-old man. Instead, he noted that Sharia law requires the consent of the girl.

For the full story, click here.