Saudi Arabia to place listening devices in mosques

In a further effort to identify radical imams the Saudi Arabian government will install electronic monitoring devices in mosques in the capital Riyadh.

Alarab Online reported on April 24 that Saudi Islamic Affairs Minister Saleh al-Sheikh stated that the new initiative would establish a Geographic Information System allowing Saudi government security officials "to film the mosque and know all its components and contents."

The daily monitoring will allow Saudi authorities to uncover imams preaching Islamic fundamentalism, permitting them "to see the Imam and the Muezzin while they lead prayers."

All Saudi mosques are due to be outfitted with Geographic Information Systems by mid-2008.

The proposed monitoring system is not the only religious change being considered by Saudi authorities. A week ago al-Sheikh said that the government was studying the possible appointment of female imams.

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