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Abdullah succeeded to the throne upon the death of his half-brother King Fahd. He was formally enthroned on 2 August 2005.
Abdullah succeeded to the throne upon the death of his half-brother King Fahd. He was formally enthroned on 2 August 2005.


Most of his criticism stems from the fact that most of the Saudi citizens live under a strict [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahhabi Wahhabist] interpretation of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia Sharia law], which mandates the amputation of hands as a punishment for theft and floggings for crimes like drunkenness. Execution by public beheading is standard for [[murder]], rape, [[Illegal Drug Trade|drug trafficking]], and witchcraft, and Abdullah's policies towards the rights of women have also been criticized. In a slight rebuff to accusations of human rights violations, Saudi inmates of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Najran_Province Najran Province] sent the King well-wishes from jail and wished him a speedy recovery.   
Most of his criticism stems from the fact that most of the Saudi citizens live under a strict [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahhabi Wahhabist] interpretation of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia Sharia law], which mandates the amputation of hands as a punishment for theft and floggings for crimes like drunkenness. Execution by public beheading is standard for [[murder]], [[rape]], [[Illegal Drug Trade|drug trafficking]], and witchcraft, and Abdullah's policies towards the rights of women have also been criticized. In a slight rebuff to accusations of human rights violations, Saudi inmates of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Najran_Province Najran Province] sent the King well-wishes from jail and wished him a speedy recovery.   


King Abdullah has also been criticized for his policies on religious freedom, which is reportedly non-existent, and the Saudi government allegedly has arrested [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiite Shiite] pilgrims on the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hajj Hajj]. On 24 January 2007, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Watch Human Rights Watch] sent an open letter to King Abdullah asking him to cease religious persecution of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmadiyya Ahmadi] faith in Saudi Arabia. Two messages were sent in November 2006 and February 2007 asking him to remove the travel ban on critics of the Saudi government. Human Rights Watch has not yet indicated whether they have received any response to these letters.
King Abdullah has also been criticized for his policies on religious freedom, which is reportedly non-existent, and the Saudi government allegedly has arrested [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiite Shiite] pilgrims on the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hajj Hajj]. On 24 January 2007, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Rights_Watch Human Rights Watch] sent an open letter to King Abdullah asking him to cease religious persecution of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmadiyya Ahmadi] faith in Saudi Arabia. Two messages were sent in November 2006 and February 2007 asking him to remove the travel ban on critics of the Saudi government. Human Rights Watch has not yet indicated whether they have received any response to these letters.