Saudi Arabia: More than 160 protesters arrested

At least 161 people were arrested in the early hours of 1 March after refusing to stop an unlicensed peaceful protest against the detention of relatives. The men and women had staged a demonstration outside the Bureau for Investigation and Public Prosecution in Buraydah, about 350km north-west of Riyadh, calling for the release of dozens of women and children detained since 27 February for staging similar protests.