‘Ruthven argues that western governments and businesses are whitewashing Saudi atrocities by lavishing investment, sporting spectacles such as the World Cup and F1 racing, and normal relations with the House of Saud.

‘He denies that there is substantial modernisation or reforms in Saudi Arabia as the Wahhabi clergy are recalcitrantly stuck in the past and the Saudi regime dreads substantive change.’

So states Canada’s Life and Family Newspaper, The Interim, in its review of Malise Ruthven’s book, Unholy Kingdom: Religion, Corruption and Violence in Saudi Arabia.

In recent years, the ruling family in Saudi Arabia, the House of Saud, has promoted the oil-rich kingdom as an open, liberalising nation that has invested in culture, tourism, and social innovation. But the murder in 2018 of journalist Jamal Khashoggi reveals a darker reality: one of intensifying political and religious repression, all within the tumultuous context of the war in Yemen, sectarian rivalry with Iran, the crisis in Gaza, and volatile relations with the United States.

Ruthven worked as an editor with the BBC Arabic Service and World Service in London before teaching Islamic studies and comparative religion at universities on both sides of the Atlantic. He is the author of several books on Islamic affairs as well as fundamentalism and religion in America. In 2004, Prospect Magazine ranked Ruthven among the 100 top public intellectuals in the UK.

He is in conversation with David Burnett at Bridport Arts Centre on Thursday 6 November at 12 noon. Tickets online from the arts centre website or in person from Bridport Tourist Information Centre or call 01308 424901.