28.4 C
Pattaya
Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Saudi woman jailed for 34 years for using Twitter

spot_img

Must read

The 34-year-old Salma al-Shehab from Saudi Arabia has been sentenced on appeal to a historically high prison sentence of 34 years. She is said to have caused public unrest on her Twitter account, according to the government, The Guardian reports . Human rights groups react with shock to the conviction of the mother of two young children.

Al-Shehab was arrested in Saudi Arabia in January 2021. The mother of two young boys was studying at the University of Leeds, in England at the time, and was only on holiday to her home country. Saudi authorities accused her of spreading disinformation through social media to cause public unrest. Al-Shehab followed activists’ accounts on the social media platform and shared some of their posts.

After the arrest, Al-Shehab was sentenced to six years in prison. After the appeal, this sentence was increased to 34 years, followed by a travel ban of another 34 years. The appeal included new charges and the case was heard in a special Saudi terrorism court. It is the most severe sentence ever imposed on a Saudi activist.

Saudi Arabia has boasted to the world that they are improving women’s rights and implementing legal reforms, but with this appalling statement there is no doubt that the situation has only gotten worse.”

Bethany al-Haidari

According to court documents, the sentence is so severe because Al-Shehab is said to have helped people “who want to cause public unrest and who want to destabilize social and national security” . They allegedly did this by following their Twitter accounts and further spreading their messages. El-Shehab defended herself by saying she did not pose a security risk because her Twitter account only has 2,600 followers. Furthermore, she is not a well-known or influential activist.

Human rights activists from all over the world reacted with shock to the prison sentence. Bethany al-Haidari of The Freedom Initiative, a Washington-based human rights organization, made her voice heard on Twitter. “Saudi Arabia has boasted to the world that they are improving women’s rights and implementing legal reforms, but this abhorrent statement makes it clear that the situation has only gotten worse. The Saudi authorities must release Salma and ensure that her young children did not grow up without a mother, simply because she called for freedom for human rights activists.”

The independent human rights organization ALQST is also concerned about the arrest and the long prison term. Like many others, they also express themselves on Twitter.

A few weeks ago, US President Biden was visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The two talked about human rights and the murder of critical journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Bin Salman said he regrets this event and that the country has taken all necessary measures regarding the Kahshoggi incident.

Catch up on more stories here

Follow us on Facebook here

- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -spot_img
- Advertisement -spot_img

Latest article