Latest posts by Anas Soliman from September, 2012
Saudi Arabia: Families of Uncharged Prisoners Protest on National Day
Imprisonment without charges is the top human rights issue in Saudi Arabia. Families of uncharged prisoners, estimated to be around 30,000 detainees, took the risk to raise awareness about the cause, with a sit-in outside the al-Turfiya prison, near Buraidah. Here's how that sit-in was dispersed.
Saudi Arabia: Authorities Threaten to Block YouTube
Saudi Arabia is threatening to block YouTube, if the latter does not block access to all the clips which lead to the 14-minute trailer of the movie Innocence of Muslims. Saudis, who have ranked first in worldwide YouTube views, overall, reacted to the statement with anger and sarcasm.
Saudi Arabia: Committee Backs Legalizing Infinite Detention
The Committee of Islamic and Judicial Affairs in the appointed Saudi Consultative Assembly supported suggestions to relax the requirements for execution and to give courts the right to approve infinite detention. The current law mandates unanimity in the national Judicial Council for death sentences, but the suggested amendment would allow death sentences to pass by a majority of opinions. Activists make their opposition heard on Twitter.
Saudi Arabia: Reformist Figures Refuse Secret Trial
The third hearing session in the ongoing trials of two prominent Saudi human rights activists was held earlier today, September 8. Mohammad al-Qahtani and Abdullah al-Hamid, who are among the co-founders of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association, are facing charges that include inciting the public to protest and impeding the country’s development. When the judge insisted on holding the session behind closed doors, the activists decided to leave.
Saudi Arabia: Trial Challenged by Prominent Human Rights Reformists
"Abdullah al-Hamid turned the hearing session today into a lecture about the rights of the accused and the principles of justice. It will go down in history"
