breakingnews:

Saudi Arabia’s king appoints women to advisory council for 1st time

Bloomberg News: King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has appointed female members to the Consultative Council for the first time, naming 30 women to the 150-member advisory body.

The appointments, reported by the official Saudi Press Agency, came after Abdullah issued a decree requiring at least 20 percent of members should be women. It says they must observe Islamic law and be properly covered, and will enjoy full rights in the council, have a separate entrance to the chamber and sit in a special section apart from men.

Photo: King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud of Saudi Arabia (Hassan Ammar / AP, file)

This is a huge step for that region. Curious to see where things go from here.