<span>Eleven of the republics of the former Soviet Union are members of the commonwealth of independent states. The Commonwealth of Independent States was created when the Soviet Union dissolved and became Russia in 1991. Originally, it included ten of the former republics: Armenia, Kazakhstan, Molova, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan Taiikistan, and Ukraine.</span>
The rights of Israeli citizens differ greatly from the rights of Iranian and Saudi Arabian citizens. The only similarity between the three countries is that they all offer citizens some degree of voting rights, but these rights vary among the nations. Israel and Iran allow both men and women to vote, while Saudi Arabia restricts voting to men only. The governments of Saudi Arabia and Iran both restrict the rights of their citizens to a great degree. In these countries there is little political participation, as political parties do not exist and supreme rulers, not citizens, decide on most aspects of government. Freedoms of speech, press, and religion are also very limited in Saudi Arabia and Iran. Israel's government provides citizens with a large degree of political participation. There are many different political parties to join, and freedoms like speech and religion are guaranteed by law.
