Two Saudi sisters appealed on social media for international protection on Wednesday, claiming they would be in danger if they were made to return to the kingdom.

Maha al-Subaie, 28, and Wafa al-Subaie, 25, said they had arrived in Georgia after running away from their family and were worried they would be forcibly sent home, in the third such public case of Saudi runaways in recent months.

"We fled oppression from our family because the laws in Saudi Arabia (are) too weak to protect us,” said Wafa, without elaborating. “We are seeking the UNHCR (the UN’s refugee agency) protection in order to be taken to a safe country.”

They said they ran away during a family holiday to Sri Lanka, making it to Georgia, which is visa-free for Saudis. They claimed that their father and brother had since travelled to the former Soviet state to find them.

They posted pictures of their passports on Twitter and a video of themselves without headscarves, which is taboo in the ultraconservative kingdom.