The United Nations has selected Saudi Arabia to chair its Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). The 45 member states of the CSW appointed Saudi Ambassador Abdulasis Alwasil as chair of the next session by acclamation on Wednesday in New York. The mandate lasts for one year. The human rights organization Amnesty International expressed its shock on Thursday. Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy in which the royal family rules with an ultra-conservative interpretation of Islam. It is ranked 132nd out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023 report on gender equality. “This is a…