For the Sake of Profit and Political Deals: The UK Abandons a Wrongfully Detained British Citizen in Saudi Arabia
Together for Justice strongly condemns the continued detention of British national Ahmed Al-Doush by the Saudi authorities, and the outrageous eight-year prison sentence handed down to him over a single social media post published — and deleted — eight years ago. This case exemplifies the arbitrary and repressive misuse of counterterrorism laws to silence peaceful expression.
Ahmed Al-Doush, a British citizen and father of four residing in Manchester, travelled to Saudi Arabia in August 2024 for a family holiday. Upon arrival at Riyadh Airport, he was arbitrarily detained and swept into a cycle of abuse and injustice. In May 2025, he was sentenced to ten years in prison — later reduced to eight — over old tweets he had posted on X (formerly Twitter), commenting on political issues in Egypt, Sudan, and Gaza.
Throughout his detention, Al-Doush was subjected to prolonged interrogations without access to legal counsel and spent 33 days in solitary confinement before even being informed of the charges. His trial, conducted under Saudi anti-terrorism legislation, lacked even the most basic standards of fairness. Neither his lawyer nor his family were given access to legal documents or the court ruling — a flagrant violation of due process and international human rights norms.
Making matters worse, Al-Doush has been denied regular and confidential contact with his family. His communications are heavily monitored and restricted. He has been explicitly warned not to discuss his detention conditions, his case, or even to speak English during calls — under threat of suspension of his limited phone privileges.
His wife, Amaher Noor, returned to the UK pregnant with their fourth child, who was born while her father was in prison — a daughter he has never seen. She reports that the children have been severely affected by their father’s absence, with daily episodes of distress and emotional trauma, especially for the youngest child who has yet to meet her father.
The family recently revealed that Ahmed is on the verge of launching a hunger strike out of desperation, in protest of his ill-treatment and the deafening silence from the British authorities.
The UK Government: Silence in Exchange for Interests
Together for Justice holds the UK government directly responsible for the ongoing violation of one of its citizen’s fundamental rights. The government’s complete failure to take any concrete steps — whether through public advocacy or diplomatic pressure — sends a dangerous message of complicity.
Despite repeated appeals from Al-Doush’s family and legal representatives, the UK government initially refused to disclose any information regarding his situation, citing so-called “data protection” rules — a bureaucratic excuse often used to avoid political accountability. This continued even after the family provided explicit legal authorisation for government intervention, raising serious concerns of implicit complicity and a deliberate choice to prioritise economic and political ties with Saudi Arabia over the rights of a British national.
The behaviour of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) — limited to vague public statements with no apparent action — reflects a shameful double standard. It underscores how British policy increasingly favours lucrative deals with authoritarian regimes, even when the cost is the freedom and wellbeing of its own citizens.
Together for Justice urgently calls on international human rights bodies, British MPs, and civil society actors to take immediate action and demand the unconditional release of Ahmed Al-Doush. We also call for an independent investigation into the circumstances of his arrest and the UK government’s inadequate response.
The UK’s silence is not neutrality — it is a betrayal. A betrayal of the democratic values it claims to uphold. A betrayal of its duty to protect. And a betrayal of a man and a family torn apart by injustice in a foreign prison.
