Saudi women's rights activist sentenced to nearly 6 years in prison

One of Saudi Arabias most prominent womens rights activists was sentenced to nearly six years in prison under a vague and broadly worded counterterrorism law The ruling nearly brings to a close a case that has drawn international criticism and the ire of US lawmakersLoujain alHathloul has already been in pretrial detention and has endured several stretches of solitary confinement Her continued imprisonment was likely to be a point of contention in relations between the kingdom and the incoming presidency of Joe Biden whose inauguration takes place in January around two months before what is now expected to be alHathlouls release dateAlHathloul could be released in March 2021 based on time already served according to rights group Prisoners of Conscience which focuses on Saudi political detainees She has been imprisoned since May 2018 and 34 months of her sentencing will be suspendedHer family said in a statement she will be barred from leaving the kingdom for five years and required to serve three years of probation after her release Biden has vowed to review the USSaudi relationship and take into greater consideration human rights and democratic principlesHe has also vowed to reverse President Donald Trumps policy of giving Saudi Arabia a blank check to pursue a disastrous set of policies including the targeting of female activists Jake Sullivan Bidens incoming national security adviser called the sentencing of alHathloul unjust and troublingAs we have said the BidenHarris administration will stand up against human rights violations wherever they occur he said in a tweetAlHathloul was found guilty and sentenced to five years and eight months by the kingdoms antiterrorism court on charges of agitating for change pursuing a foreign agenda using the internet to harm public order and cooperating with individuals and entities that have committed crimes under antiterror laws according to statelinked Saudi news site SabqThe charges all come under the countrys broadly worded counterterrorism lawAnother Saudi womens rights activist Mayaa alZahrani was issued the same sentence for a similar list of charges by the Specialised Criminal Court which tries terrorism cases according to local media reports on Monday Both women have 30 days to appeal the verdictsA number of other womens rights activists remain imprisoned or continue to face trials on charges related to their activism such as pushing for the right to drive before the ban was lifted in mid2018 She was charged tried and convicted using counterterrorism lawsrdquo Loujains sister Lina alHathloul said in a statementMy sister is not a terrorist she is an activist To be sentenced for her activism for the very reforms that MBS and the Saudi kingdom so proudly tout is the ultimate hypocrisy she said referring to the Saudi crown prince by his initialsSabq which said its reporter was allowed inside the courtroom reported that the judge said alHathloul had confessed without coercion to committing the crimesThe report said the verdict was issued in the presence of the prosecutor the defendant a representative from the governments Human Rights Commission and a handful of select local media representativesThe 31yearold Saudi activist has long been defiantly outspoken about human rights in Saudi Arabia even from behind bars She launched hunger strikes to protest her imprisonment and joined other female activists in telling Saudi judges that she was tortured and sexually assaulted by masked men during interrogationsThe women say they were caned electrocuted and waterboarded Some say they were forcibly groped and threatened with rape AlHathloul rejected an offer to rescind her allegations of torture in exchange for early release according to her family A court recently dismissed her allegations citing a lack of evidenceAmong other allegations was that one of the masked interrogators was Saud alQahtani a close confidante and advisor to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the time AlQahtani was later sanctioned by the US for his alleged role in the murder of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdoms consulate in TurkeyIn many ways her case came to symbolize Prince Mohammeds dual strategy of being credited for ushering in sweeping social reforms and simultaneously cracking down on activists who had long pushed for change While some activists and their families have been pressured into silence alHathlouls siblings who reside in the US and Europe consistently spoke out against the state prosecutors case and launched campaigns calling for her releaseThe prosecutor had called for the maximum sentence of 20 years citing evidence such as alHathlouls tweets in support of women driving and speaking out against male guardianship laws that had led to multiple instances of Saudi women fleeing abusive families for refuge abroadAlHathlouls family said the prosecutors evidence included her contacts with rights group Amnesty International She was also charged with speaking to European diplomats about human rights in Saudi Arabia though that was later dropped by the prosecutorThe longtime activist was first detained in 2014 under the previous monarch King Abdullah and held for more than 70 days after she attempted to livestream herself driving from the United Arab Emirates to Saudi Arabia to protest the kingdoms ban on women drivingShes also spoken out against guardianship laws that barred women from travelling abroad without the consent of a male relative such as a father husband or brother The kingdom eased guardianship laws last year allowing women to apply for a passport and travel freelyHer activism landed her multiple human rights awards and spreads in magazines like Vanity Fair in a photo shoot next to Meghan Markle who would later become the Duchess of Sussex She was also a Nobel Peace Prize nomineeAlHathlouls family say in 2018 shortly after attending a UNrelated meeting in Geneva about the situation of womens rights in Saudi Arabia she was kidnapped by Emirati security forces in Abu Dhabi where shed been residing and pursuing a masters degree She was then forced on a plane to Saudi Arabia where she was barred from travelling and later arrestedAlHathloul was among three female activists targeted that year by statelinked media which circulated her picture online and dubbed her a traitorKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest newsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever