Saudi Arabia: Muhammad Al-Fawzan Still Held Behind Bars Over Tweets
The Saudi activist and blogger Mohammed Al-Fawzan has been held in Saudi prisons for more than two years solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression.
Al-Fawzan, also known as Abu Nura, is a social media activist who has tens of thousands of followers on Twitter. He tweeted more than once on very sensitive issues in the Saudi Kingdom, including homosexuals, democracy, and human rights.
In April 2020, Al-Fawzan was arrested and arbitrarily held in Saudi jails without any legal basis. He was deprived of all his basic human rights as a political prisoner, including access to a lawyer or family visits.
Al-Fawzan is currently held amid very difficult detention conditions in violation of the international standards, deepening his difficult psychological situation.
As US President Joe Biden is preparing to visit Saudi Arabia over the next few days, we call to put human rights at the center of his upcoming visit.
Saudi Arabia has long claimed progress on human rights issues. However, the disappearance and jailing of dissidents are still ongoing, allegations of torture in prison are widespread and decades-long sentences are out of proportion to the alleged crimes.
During his trip, Biden should raise the human rights file and press for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners from the Saudi jails.
