Erasing women in Saudi Arabia.

• Position: Middle East - Brief article

Ikea is known for its hip, modern style and affordable prices for young families. So when the Swedish home furnishings company recently released its fall catalogue for Saudi Arabia, customers did a double take: All the women had been Photoshopped out. Ikea says it was trying to show respect for the culture of the conservative Muslim nation, where women can't leave home without a male chaperone or drive, and must be covered head to toe in public. But even in Saudi Arabia, an oil-rich country of 28 million, attitudes are changing, if slowly. Images of women in ads are now tolerated, as...