A Saudi female activist has been arrested after mounting a brave one-woman protest against the country's female driving ban.
Loujain Hathloul, 25, from the country's capital of Riyadh, spent 24 hours at the border after she had her passport confiscated and was blocked from entering her own country - all because she got behind the wheel.
She was arrested and taken for interrogation at Hofuf prosecution office, in the desert kingdom.The French literature graduate started her journey from the United Arab Emirates, where she holds a driving licence and where it is legal for women to drive, and tried to cross its border into Saudi Arabia yesterday.
But border officials refused to let her cross and took away her passport. She spent a cold night sleeping in her car.
This morning she was taken away be police and was held at Albatha port police station. She was arrested and is now being questioned at Hofuf prosecution office.She was brought supplies from Saudi journalist and presenter Maysaa Al Amoudi, who had her ID confiscated and is now also being questioned.
Ms Hathloul's fiance Fahad Albutairi said he was heading to the police station where she is being held.
He said: 'She is a smart woman. She is holding up very well, as is her companion. Hopefully things will be over very soon.
'I am heading over to see what happened although I am not sure I will be able to see her because of operation hours.
'When she left Abu Dhabi, she was prepared for all scenarios and for something like this to happen or more.
'She is a very smart, strong, intelligent woman and I know her for a fact to be a person who does not do anything without thinking it through thoroughly.Women have been barred from driving since the establishment of the state in 1932 and earlier this year, a woman reportedly received 150 lashes after being caught behind the wheel.
Protests and acts of defiance against the ban have grown in recent years, with women posting videos of them behind the wheel to social media. Last week, Princess Ameerah, the former wife of a multi-billionaire Saudi Arabian royal, vowed to fight to win the basic right for women in the kingdom to drive a car, telling MailOnline it 'can happen overnight'.
She told MailOnline at the 5th Abu Dhabi Media Summit in the United Arab Emirates last week: 'It is my job and duty to use my power and influence to highlight these kind of issues and to try to find solutions.
'I am offered platforms to speak around the world, and I must use them to try to change things.
'I don't believe the ban will go on indefinitely. It will be like the decree calling for 20 per cent of Parliament to be made up of women – a surprising development, but one which happened very rapidly.
'I believe that it is the generation of young people in Saudi Arabia which is going to accelerate change in the country.'
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