Rania al-Baz ( ar, رانيا الباز) is a

Saudi Arabian Saudis ( ar, سعوديون, Suʿūdiyyūn) are people identified with the country of Saudi Arabia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. The Saudis are composed mainly of Arabs and primarily speak a regional dialect ...

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for ...

, well known as the host of the programme "The Kingdom this Morning". She came to prominence after being badly beaten by her husband Muhammad Bakar Yunus al-Fallatta and hospitalized on April 13, 2004, when she was knocked unconscious and her face suffered 13 fractures. When photographs of her "bruised and swollen face" were published, they "sent shockwaves through her country and around the world", according to ''

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

'' journalist

Ed Vulliamy Edward Sebastian Vulliamy (born 1 August 1954) is a British journalist and writer. Early life and education Vulliamy was born and raised in Notting Hill, London. His mother was the children's author and illustrator Shirley Hughes, his father ...

.Saudi TV host's beating raises taboo topic: domestic violence against Muslim women
By Souheila Al-Jadda , csmonitor.com , May 12, 2004, accessed 2014-10-15 In 2001, Al-Baz became the first female announcer on Saudi television despite opposition from religious conservatives over her uncovered face and colored (rather than black) hijab. Her career prospered until her beating in 2004. According to Al-Baz, her husband beat her after she answered the phone without his permission. He told her she was going to die, and after beating her and slamming her face repeatedly against the marble floor, put her body in the trunk of his car. When she woke up and started moaning, he dropped her off at a private hospital. According to Vulliamy, her story has "fundamentally challenged the culture of silence" in Saudi Arabia "over violence against women". Her husband was sentenced to six months in jail and 300 lashes, but was reduced by half "after Baz publicly pardoned him and waived a compensation suit". Her husband was ordered by a court to divorce. Baz divorced her husband and won custody of her children. ''

Arab News ''Arab News'' is an English-language daily newspaper published in Saudi Arabia. It is published from Riyadh. The target audiences of the paper, which is published in broadsheet format, are businessmen, executives and diplomats. At least as of ...

'' called her "a ground-breaker", and her decision to go public telling what happened to her, "a sensation in this private society". Al-Baz wrote a book about her ordeal, ''Disfigured: A Saudi Woman's Story of Triumph Over Violence''. Following her beating and recovery, al-Baz worked on

Al Arabiya Arabiya ( ar, العربية, transliterated: '; meaning "The Arabic One" or "The Arab One") is an international Arabic news television channel, currently based in Dubai, that is operated by the media conglomerate MBC. The channel is a flag ...

and the Lebanese channel

Future Television Future Television ( ar, تلفزيون المستقبل, ''Televiziyon al-Mustaqbal'') was a Lebanese free-to-air television station founded in 1993 by the Future Movement leader Rafik Hariri, a former Prime Minister of Lebanon. Future TV was al ...

. She was criticized again for appearing on foreign television programs without her headscarf and allegedly criticizing

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. On August 26, 2013, a law was enacted making domestic abuse a "criminal offense punishable by a year in jail and a fine of up to USD $13,300". According to Thomas Lippman, passage of the law was provoked by her beating and the photos of it that "forced into the arena of public discussion a subject that had long been kept quiet".

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Head shot of Muhammad Bakar Yunus al-Fallatta
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baz, Rania Violence against women in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabian women Living people Year of birth missing (living people)

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