Personal information
- Sex: Male
- Marital status: Single
- Area of activity: Human rights activist , Women’s rights activist
- Place of residence: Riyadh
Human rights defender Mohammed al-Rabiah is one of a number of male advocates for women’s rights who were arrested and tortured, along with prominent women human rights defenders, in the summer of 2018. He had actively campaigned against the male guardianship system and for women in Saudi Arabia to be allowed to drive.
Arrest and jail information
- Prison: Dhahban Central Prison, Jeddah
- Date of arrest: 15 May 2018
Trial information
- Charges: The charges against him relate to his peaceful activism and defence of human rights. They include “seeking to shake the social fabric or national cohesion”, “instigating strife”, “carrying out foreign agendas that disrupt the kingdom’s security and stability”, and “authorising and publishing a book containing suspicious trends”.
- Court: Specialised Criminal Court (SCC)
- Verdict: Six years and six months in prison, with a two year suspension (from the date of his detention), followed by a travel ban of the same length, on the basis of ta’zir (the judge’s discretion). This is under several articles including Article 6 of the Anti-Cybercrime Law and Articles 53 and 55 of the Law on Combating Crimes of Terrorism and its Financing (the Counter-Terrorism Law).
- Date of verdict: 20 April 2021
Violations
- Arbitrary arrest/ detention ,
- Denied contact with family ,
- Denied access to a lawyer ,
- Torture and ill-treatment
Violation details
Following his arrest on 15 May 2018 he was subjected for months to brutal torture in detention. Al-Rabiah, who suffers from a herniated disc, was tortured by electric shocks and waterboarding; held in a small wardrobe for several days, unable to sit or sleep; hung upside down by his feet; and beaten until unconscious.Timeline
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Early December 2022 - The SCC sentenced him to 17 years in prison. -
Late September 2022 - Although al-Rabiah’s prison term expired, the Supreme Court accepted a request filed by the Public Prosecution to retry him, meaning that his case will now be transferred back to the SCC. On 25 September he started a hunger strike in protest over his situation.
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September 2021 - The Court of Appeal upheld the six-year prison sentence against him.
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17 April 2021 - Specialised Criminal Court (SCC) sentenced him to six years in prison (from the date of his detention), followed by a travel ban of the same length, on the basis of ta’zir (the judge’s discretion). This is under several articles including Article 6 of the Anti-Cybercrime Law and Articles 53 and 55 of the Law on Combating Crimes of Terrorism and its Financing (the Counter-Terrorism Law).
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21 March 2021 - His case was transferred to the Specialised Criminal Court (SCC).
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15 May 2018 - Al-Rabiah was arbitrarily arrested during a wave of arrests of activists who denounced Saudi Arabia’s male guardianship system.
