This image released by the Saudi Information Ministry, a Saudi woman speaks to an officer before her driving exam, at the General Department of Traffic in the capital, Riyadh, Monday, June 4, 2018. Saudi... (Associated Press) 
 
 This image released by the Saudi Information Ministry, a Saudi woman speaks to an officer before her driving exam, at the General Department of Traffic in the capital, Riyadh, Monday, June 4, 2018. Saudi Arabia has issued the first driving licenses to 10 women just weeks before the kingdom lifts the... (Associated Press) 
 
 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia issued its first driver's licenses to 10 women on Monday as the kingdom prepared to lift the world's only ban on women driving in three weeks, but some who campaigned for the right to drive remain under arrest. 
 
 A government statement said the 10 women who were issued licenses already held driving licenses from other countries, including the U.S., U.K., Lebanon and Canada. They took a brief driving test and eye exam before being issued the licenses at the General Department of Traffic in the capital, Riyadh. International media were not present for the event. 
 
 Other women across the country have been preparing for the right to drive on June 24 by taking driving courses on female-only college campuses. Some are even training to become drivers for ride hailing companies like Uber. 
 
 Saudi women had long complained of having to hire costly male drivers, use taxis or rely on male relatives to get to work and run errands. 
 
 The surprise move to issue some women licenses early came as activists who had campaigned for the right to drive remain under arrest, facing possible trial. 
 
 Saudi Arabia's prosecutor said Sunday that 17 people had been detained in recent weeks on suspicion of trying to undermine security and stability, a case activists said targeted prominent women's rights campaigners. 
 
 The prosecutor's statement said eight have been temporarily released, while five men and four women remain under arrest. Among the women held since May 15 are Loujain al-Hathloul, Aziza al-Yousef and Eman al-Nafjan, according to people with knowledge of the arrests who've spoken to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of repercussions. 
 
 The three are among the most outspoken and well-known women's rights activists in Saudi Arabia. They not only risked arrest by pushing for the right to drive for years, but also called for an end to guardianship laws that give male relatives final say over a woman marrying or traveling abroad. 
 
 Their activism was seen as part of a larger democratic and civil rights push in the kingdom. 
 
 They now face a range of charges, including communicating with people and organizations hostile to the kingdom and providing financial and moral support to hostile elements abroad. State-linked media have referred to the group as "foreign embassy agents" and branded them traitors. 
 
 Three other veteran women's rights activists were briefly detained at the onset of the sweep. They had taken part in the first protest in 1990 against the kingdom's ban on women driving. 
 
 Nearly 50 women took part in that first driving protest some 28 years ago. The women were arrested, lost their jobs, had their passports confiscated for a year and faced severe stigmatization. 
 
 Others were detained over the years during various efforts by women's rights activists to drive. While Saudi law has never explicitly banned women from driving, women were not issued driving licenses. Often, police would detain a female driver until a male relative could pick her up and sign a pledge on her behalf that she would not drive again. 
 
 Ultraconservatives viewed women driving as immoral and warned women would be subject to sexual harassment if they drove. Just four years ago, the country's top cleric, Grand Mufti Abdulaziz Al Sheikh, said barring women from driving "was in the best interest of society" because it protected them from having to deal with an accident. 
 
 These days, the kingdom faces steep economic challenges and has a burgeoning young population that has access to the world through the internet and sees women in neighboring Muslim countries driving freely. 
 
 To boost the economy and ease international criticism, Saudi Arabia's 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been promoting changes, like the decision to allow women to drive, all while risking backlash from clerics and others who adhere to the ultraconservative Wahhabi interpretation of Islam. 
 
 The prince has also attempted to appeal to young Saudis by opening the country to more entertainment, allowing music concerts and bringing the first commercial movie theater to Saudi Arabia this year. 
 
 However, rights groups say the arrest of activists by the crown prince's security forces are an attempt to silence dissent as women prepare to drive for the first time, and may be a way to freeze any calls for greater reforms. 
 
 The spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Liz Throssell, has described the crackdown as "perplexing." 
 
 "If, as it appears, their detention is related solely to their work as human rights defenders and activists on women's issues, they should be released immediately," she said. ||||| (CNN) -- Many women in Saudi Arabia remain defiant after they put keys to ignitions Friday to drive home a point: challenging the conservative Islamic kingdom's prohibition of female drivers. 
 
 Among the dozens of women in the country who challenged the status was well-known female Saudi blogger Eman Al Nafjan. 
 
 "This is only the beginning," Al Nafjan said. 
 
 Sitting on the passenger side for her 15-minute ride through Riyadh, Al Nafjan captured the journey on her cell phone while a female friend drove. 
 
 "The whole idea behind the campaign was that June 17 is the start date. It's not the only day. It's the date when women will start to drive," she said. 
 
 Fueled by Women2Drive, a campaign demanding the right for women to drive and travel freely in Saudi Arabia, women commanded streets and roads normally reserved for men. 
 
 There are no specific traffic laws that make it illegal for women to drive in Saudi Arabia. However, religious edicts are often interpreted as a prohibition of female drivers. Such edicts also prevent women from opening bank accounts, obtaining passports or even going to school without the presence of a male guardian. 
 
 Authorities stopped Manal al Sharif, 32, for driving a car May 21 and detained her the next day. She said she was forced to sign a form promising not to drive again and spent a week in jail. 
 
 Al Sharif has not been charged, but the case remains open, and she may be called back, according to human rights activist Waleed Abu Alkhair. Her name has become a rallying cry for women demanding their rights. 
 
 The "Women2Drive 17th June" Facebook page includes a banner that reads "We are all Manal Sharif" and a quote from King Abdullah stating that "the day will come when women will be able to drive." 
 
 Al Sharif said before her detention that she was determined to speak out. 
 
 "We have a saying," she said. "The rain starts with a single drop. This is a symbolic thing." 
 
 The Women2Drive campaign was expected to be a test of wills between the government and half of the nation's citizenry. However, campaign organizers were explicit in laying out conditions for participants. 
 
 Women were told to adhere to full Islamic dress. Wave the Saudi flag and plaster a picture of the king to show patriotism. It was best to have an international driving license if you planned to drive. And have a man with you. 
 
 The campaign said it would not be responsible for any women who breached a list of 14 such principles. They were asked to show defiance but within societal confines. 
 
 A Riyadh man who went out to document what would be an unusual scene in Saudi Arabia said that the streets were typically empty for a Friday morning but that there were many fewer police officers than in March, when online organizers had called for mass demonstrations. 
 
 "I'm thinking that the government is turning sideways," Ahmad Alafaliq said. "They don't want to see it. They don't want to deal with it." 
 
 "It's a disadvantage for us," said Sulafa Kurdi, who lived in the United States once and got her driver's license when she was 18. 
 
 "It's something that we want to do, and hopefully, it will happen," she said after driving to a Riyadh restaurant with her friends and cousin. 
 
 A Saudi woman said her mother drove her and her sisters down Riyadh's main street Thursday. 
 
 The woman, who asked not to be named because she was worried about harassment and possible reprisals, said no one bothered them. 
 
 "This is important for women here. This is one of our rights," she said 
 
 Nadya Khalife, a Human Rights Watch women's rights researcher for the Middle East and North Africa, said the freedom of movement is a basic right. Saudi Arabia, she said, is the only country that bans women from driving. 
 
 Strict segregation by sex means women in Saudi Arabia can't travel without a male relative or take public transportation. Ironically, many women are forced to hire expensive private drivers or taxis to get around, forcing them to be in the company of unfamiliar men, which, said activists, does not make sense from a religious standpoint. 
 
 Khalife said that what separates the latest campaign from other efforts to get women to drive is the degree to which it has relied on social media. Women who got behind the wheel were encouraged to shoot videos of themselves. 
 
 But Saudi women face challenges, Khalife said. 
 
 "They're up against society as a whole," she said. "Some women may even face harassment or pressure from their families. Some women have clearly been in support, but others are saying they don't want to 'shame.' " 
 
 Osamah Alluaidan, an opponent of female drivers, posted on Facebook, "It is not a sin for women to drive but when women drive and disobey the Kingdom's guardians, that's the problem, this is unacceptable." 
 
 Khalife noted that some men have been supportive of their daughters, wives and sisters taking part in the driving campaign. 
 
 Alkhair, speaking Thursday from London, said he encouraged his wife to drive in Jeddah on Friday. 
 
 "I think after what the police and the interior ministry did to Manal al Sharif, a lot of women became afraid," he said. "The Interior Ministry has put a lot of police on the street. They want to send a message to all women." 
 
 But on Friday, Saudi women defied tradition, no matter how bumpy the road. 
 
 CNN's Eve Bower and Atika Shubert contributed to this report.
– Saudi Arabia issued its first driver's licenses to 10 women on Monday as the kingdom prepared to lift the world's only ban on women driving in three weeks, but some who campaigned for the right to drive remain under arrest. A government statement said the 10 women who were issued licenses already held driving licenses from other countries, including the US, UK, Lebanon, and Canada. They took a brief driving test and eye exam before being issued the licenses at the General Department of Traffic in the capital, Riyadh, the AP reports. A video of the first woman receiving her license quickly went viral on Twitter, Al Arabiya reports. Other women across the country have been preparing for the right to drive on June 24 by taking driving courses on female-only college campuses. Some are even training to become drivers for ride hailing companies like Uber. Saudi women had long complained of having to hire costly male drivers, use taxis, or rely on male relatives to get to work and run errands. The surprise move to issue some women licenses early came as activists who had campaigned for the right to drive remain under arrest, facing possible trial. Saudi Arabia's prosecutor said Sunday that 17 people had been detained in recent weeks on suspicion of trying to undermine security and stability, a case activists said targeted prominent women's rights campaigners. The prosecutor's statement said eight have been temporarily released, while five men and four women remain under arrest. Among the women held since May 15 are Loujain al-Hathloul, Aziza al-Yousef and Eman al-Nafjan, according to people with knowledge of the arrests. The three are among the most outspoken and well-known women's rights activists in Saudi Arabia.