Nigeria, Dec. 10 -- Saudi Arabia has reportedly eased its 70-year prohibition on alcohol and commenced sales to a limited group of non-Muslim foreigners who hold "premium residency" permits.

According to The New York Times, a discreet liquor store in Riyadh, which initially opened to diplomats, has started allowing wealthy foreigners to purchase whiskey and champagne.

For decades, only diplomats were allowed to buy alcohol in Saudi Arabia legally. This followed the country's strict alcohol ban introduced in 1952.

The law was created after a serious incident in which one of King Abdulaziz Ibn Saud's sons, while drunk, shot and killed a British diplomat on 16 November 1951. The tragedy led the kingdom to enforce a total ban on alcohol. ...