Saudi lady sentenced to 45 years in jail for on-line posts, says NGO

A Saudi court docket has sentenced one other lady to 45 years in jail for posts on social media, in accordance with a human rights NGO.

Nourah al-Qahtani was jailed for “utilizing the Web to divide society” and “undermining public order,” the Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) stated in a assertion.

Al-Qahtani has been detained in Saudi Arabia since July 2021 and was convicted “doubtless inside final week,” the Washington-based NGO added.

It comes lower than a month after one other Saudi lady, Salma al-Shehab, was sentenced to 34 years in jail and given an extra 34-year journey ban for following and retweeting activists on Twitter.

The 34-year-old PhD scholar was accused of “serving to” dissidents to “destabilise the state” and was arrested in December 2020 whereas visiting dwelling from the College of Leeds within the UK.

The specialised felony court docket, which usually handles political and nationwide safety circumstances, gave the sentence throughout al-Qahtani’s enchantment of her earlier conviction.

The decades-long jail sentences have each been condemned by human rights organisations.

“The conviction of al-Qahtani … apparently only for tweeting her views, reveals how emboldened Saudi authorities really feel to punish even the mildest criticism from its residents,” stated DAWN’s Gulf Area Analysis Director Abdullah Alaoudh.

“It’s not possible to not join the dots between the assembly of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and US President Joe Biden final month in Jeddah and the uptick within the repressive assaults in opposition to anybody who dares criticise the crown prince or the Saudi authorities for well-documented abuses,” Alaoudh added.

“A lot much less is thought about Nourah al-Qahtani and DAWN is constant to analyze her case.”

Saudi Arabia has toughened its crackdown on opponents and activists since MBS grew to become the nation’s de facto chief in 2017.

Washington stated final week that it had raised “vital considerations” with Saudi Arabia over the sentencing of al-Shehab below the dominion’s broad counterterrorism and cybercrime legal guidelines.