WARNING, DISTRESSING CONTENT: Videos and photos taken from outside a prison in Saudi Arabia paint a picture of hellhole conditions for women, who haven't even broken the law, according to human right activists

07:49, 31 May 2025

Footage has captured shocking scenes from a prison

Photos and video footage show inside a 'hellhole' jail in Saudi Arabia where women are sent away by their families and 'beaten'.

In video footage obtained by the Mail, the women inside the jail appear to be staging a peaceful process over the dire conditions in their home, which is located in Khamis Mushair, in Asir Province. Security and police officers at the centre are seen rushing in and hitting the woman, with some even laying helpless on the ground.

The centre is described as a Social Education Home for Girls. However, the footage shows difficult conditions for the inmates. Adding to this women were seen being dragged by their hair, beaten with belts and sticks, and subjected to other forms of physical abuse.

The women inside are not criminals(Image: BBC)

The video is from 2022, but has recently re-emerged as locals claim the same abuse is being enacted. A former detainee has also recently spoken out about their experiences held in 'Dar al-Reaya' facilities elsewhere in the country.

Dr Maryam Aldossari, a Saudi academic at Royal Holloway, University of London, told MailOnline that the country has gone through reforms recently. However, she claims many women are still held in these fake prisons and are stuck there until a male guard allows them to leave.

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Alsossari gave examples of the horrible conditions, even accounts of women taking their own lives due to dire conditions.

Footage shocked human right activists (Image: Facebook)

"It still exists," she told the Mail. "We still know people who are there and God knows when they will leave. They completely cut them [off]. There are cameras everywhere. If you misbehave you must go to these small individual rooms, you are separated."

Aldossari left Saudi Arabia in 2008 to study and work in the UK, today works with Al Qst (ALQST), a human rights organisation that documents and promotes human rights in Saudi Arabia.

She claims the country is turning into a "police state" and residents are worried about the "dark times".

The Saudi government said they're launching an investigation (Image: Facebook)

However, when the footage emerged, the Saudi government said they were launching an investigation into the facility.

A spokesperson for the Saudi government denied that the care homes were detention centres, adding that "women are free to leave at any time" and can leave without permission from a guardian or family member.

They also said that "any allegation of abuse is taken seriously and subject to thorough investigation".

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