A Blind Poet Under Enforced Disappearance for a Year: Where is Samir Ali Al-Muslim?
As Ramadan 1446 begins, a full year has passed since the enforced disappearance of Saudi poet Samir Ali Al-Muslim, who was arbitrarily arrested by Saudi authorities during last year’s Ramadan (1445 AH – March 2024) from his home in Qatif. Since then, he has been held in an undisclosed location, with no official information provided about his fate or the charges against him. Despite his critical health condition and repeated calls from human rights organizations, Saudi authorities continue to deny him the most basic rights, ignoring both domestic and international legal obligations that protect individuals from arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance.
Al-Muslim’s arrest and subsequent disappearance were carried out with complete disregard for the law. Security forces raided his home in a violent and humiliating manner, terrorizing his family before taking him away to an unknown location. Since then, there has been no official acknowledgment of his whereabouts, and he has not been presented before any judicial authority. He has been denied legal representation, and his family’s repeated attempts to obtain information about him have been met with silence from the authorities. These actions constitute a flagrant violation of both Saudi law and international human rights treaties, reaffirming the kingdom’s systematic use of enforced disappearance as a tool to silence dissent.
The prolonged disappearance of Al-Muslim is not just a violation of his right to liberty—it is a direct threat to his physical and psychological well-being. As a blind individual, he requires specialized care and living conditions that are unlikely to be provided in Saudi detention centers, which are notorious for their inhumane treatment of prisoners of conscience. Political detainees in Saudi Arabia frequently suffer from medical neglect, psychological abuse, and coercion, including forced confessions under duress. Holding a blind man in unknown conditions without access to medical care or legal representation is a grave and deliberate act of cruelty that must not go unnoticed.
Together for Justice urgently calls on the international community to take decisive action to uncover the fate of Samir Ali Al-Muslim and demand his immediate and unconditional release. We urge UN mechanisms, particularly the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, to intensify pressure on Saudi authorities to cease this unlawful practice and ensure compliance with international human rights standards. Continued engagement with Saudi Arabia must be contingent on demonstrable reforms in its human rights policies, particularly its treatment of prisoners of conscience and its adherence to the rule of law. Furthermore, we emphasize that the ongoing arbitrary detentions in Saudi Arabia, including the enforced disappearance of Al-Muslim, are a test of the credibility of the kingdom’s claims of reform. The international community must not allow diplomatic and economic interests to overshadow fundamental human rights. Turning a blind eye to such violations is tantamount to complicity. The release of Samir Ali Al-Muslim and all prisoners detained for exercising their right to free expression is not merely a moral imperative—it is a necessary step toward genuine reform and accountability in Saudi Arabia.
