One of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent women’s rights activists has been sentenced to nearly six years in prison under a vague and broadly-worded counterterrorism law, according to state-linked media.
Loujain al-Hathloul has already been in pre-trial detention and has endured several stretches of solitary confinement. Her continued imprisonment is likely to be a point of contention in relations between the kingdom and the incoming presidency of US President-elect Joe Biden, whose inauguration takes place in January – around two months before what is now expected to be Ms al-Hathloul’s release date.
Rights group Prisoners of Conscience, which focuses on Saudi political detainees, said Ms al-Hathloul could be released in March 2021 based on time served. She has been imprisoned since May 2018, and 34 months of her sentencing will be suspended.
🔴 BREAKING
The Saudi Specialized Criminal Court issues a prison sentence of 5 years and 8 months against #LoujainAlHathloul.#لجين_الهذلول pic.twitter.com/QVeQCsxJMW— Prisoners of Conscience (@m3takl_en) December 28, 2020
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Her family said in a statement she will be barred from leaving the kingdom for five years and required to serve three years of probation after her release.
Mr Biden has vowed to review the US-Saudi relationship and take into greater consideration human rights and democratic principles. He has also vowed to reverse US President Donald Trump’s policy of giving Saudi Arabia “a blank cheque to pursue a disastrous set of policies”, including the targeting of female activists.
Ms Al-Hathloul was found guilty and sentenced to five years and eight months by the kingdom’s anti-terrorism court on charges of agitating for change, pursuing a foreign agenda, using the internet to harm public order and co-operating with individuals and entities that have committed crimes under anti-terror laws, according to state-linked Saudi news site Sabq. The charges all come under the country’s broadly-worded counterterrorism law.
She has 30 days to appeal the verdict.
🔴 BREAKING 2#LoujainAlHathloul's prison sentence ends in March 2021, as:
- Total verdict: 68 months
- Period of suspension: 34 months
- The start of calculating the prison verdict: May 2018
This means that she only has 3 months left in prison.#لجين_الهذلول pic.twitter.com/stHJ1LQsNRAdvertisement— Prisoners of Conscience (@m3takl_en) December 28, 2020
“She was charged, tried and convicted using counter-terrorism laws,” her sister, Lina al-Hathloul, said in a statement. “My sister is not a terrorist, she is an activist. To be sentenced for her activism for the very reforms that MBS (Mohammed bin Salman) and the Saudi kingdom so proudly tout is the ultimate hypocrisy,” she said, referring to the Saudi crown prince.
Sabq, which said its reporter was allowed inside the courtroom, reported that the judge said the defendant had confessed to committing the crimes and that her confessions were made voluntarily and without coercion. The report said the verdict was issued in the presence of the prosecutor, the defendant, a representative from the government’s Human Rights Commission and a handful of select local media representatives.
The 31-year-old Saudi activist has long been defiantly outspoken about human rights in Saudi Arabia, even from behind bars. She launched hunger strikes to protest against her imprisonment and joined other female activists in telling Saudi judges that she was tortured and sexually assaulted by masked men during interrogations. The women say they were caned, electrocuted and waterboarded. Some say they were forcibly groped and threatened with rape.
Ms Al-Hathloul rejected an offer to rescind her allegations of torture in exchange for early release, according to her family. A court recently dismissed her allegations, citing a lack of evidence.
