Saudi to axe strict Islamic law

SAUDI Arabia’s Crown Prince has promised to break the country free from the ‘destructive’ Islamic law.

Mohammed bin Salman pledged a ‘moderate and open’ society yesterday as he announced a £380 billion new megacity.

Speaking in the capital Riyadh, the Crown Prince, 32, said: ‘We want to live a normal life. A life in which our religion translates to tolerance, to our traditions of kindness.

‘Seventy per cent of the population is under 30, and honestly we will not spend the next 30 years of our lives dealing with destructive ideas. We will destroy them today.’ The heir to the throne added: ‘We were not like this in the past. We want to go back to what we were: Moderate Islam.’

The new city project, dubbed Neom, will be built along the country’s Red Sea coastline and could lead the way in the use of drones, driverless cars and robotics.

The Middle Eastern country has long been criticised for its severe religious laws which restrict women’s lives. It comes after King Salman lifted a decades-long ban prohibiting women from driving last month.