Saudi Regime Continues to Arbitrarily Detain Sheikh Salman Al-Ouda Amid Serious Health Deterioration

Together for Justice expresses grave concern over the continued arbitrary detention of prominent Islamic scholar Dr. Salman Al-Ouda, who has now been held in solitary confinement in Saudi Arabia for over seven years, since his arrest in September 2017. Recent reports confirm a serious deterioration in his health, including near-complete vision loss in one eye, amid ongoing medical neglect and isolation.

According to credible sources, Dr. Al-Ouda remains confined in a solitary cell under harsh and degrading conditions, without access to adequate medical care. His son, academic and human rights advocate Abdullah Al-Ouda, confirmed that his father has not been transferred out of isolation since the day of his arrest. This prolonged solitary confinement constitutes a clear form of torture under international law and represents a severe violation of his basic human rights.

Despite his worsening physical condition, Al-Ouda reportedly maintains a strong psychological state and spiritual resilience, spending his time in prayer and Quran recitation. However, this does not absolve the authorities of accountability for the deliberate harm caused by his ongoing treatment.

Over seven years into his detention, no final judgment has been issued in his case. The trial was suspended in 2021 with no explanation, and the legal proceedings remain at a standstill. The Public Prosecution had previously sought the death penalty for Dr. Al-Ouda on vague terrorism-related charges—a demand also made against scholars Awad Al-Qarni and Ali Al-Omari. These cases have been widely condemned by international observers as politically driven and lacking the minimum standards of due process.

The Saudi authorities’ failure to issue a verdict or release Dr. Al-Ouda, while selectively releasing other detainees, reinforces the pattern of arbitrary detention, selective justice, and punitive retaliation against influential public figures who have expressed independent thought or criticism.

Together for Justice calls on the Saudi authorities to:

• Immediately and unconditionally release Dr. Salman Al-Ouda, whose continued detention lacks any legal or judicial basis.
• End all forms of solitary confinement and provide urgent, comprehensive medical treatment in accordance with international standards.
• Drop all politically motivated charges and close his case without delay.
• Allow full and consistent access to legal representation and family contact.
• Be held accountable before international mechanisms for the torture, arbitrary detention, and denial of healthcare inflicted on Dr. Al-Ouda.

The ongoing detention of Dr. Salman Al-Ouda is not only a gross miscarriage of justice, but a politically motivated act of repression. It further exposes the extent to which the Saudi regime weaponises the judiciary to silence independent voices and detain scholars without legal foundation or fair trial.