ALQST for Human Rights-Political Prisoners

Personal information

Sex: Female
Area of activity: Blogger , Women’s rights activist

Manahel al-Otaibi is a fitness trainer and social media influencer who used her online platform to call for women’s rights, by tweeting under feminist hashtags such as #EndMaleGuardianship and challenging the official Saudi dress code by posting photos of herself not wearing an abaya.

Arrest and jail information

Prison: Malaz Prison, Riyadh
Date of arrest: 16 November 2022

Trial information

Charges: Manahel and her sister Fouz both face charges under the kingdom’s draconian Anti-Cybercrime Law that include “opposing the laws relating to women, such as the male guardianship system and the hijab law”, “participating in several hashtags opposing these laws, notably ‘isqaat al-wilaaya’ (‘abolish male guardianship’)”, “having several photos and video clips in indecent clothes on [their] [social media] accounts”, and “going to the shops without wearing an abaya, photographing this, and publishing it on Snapchat”.

Violations

Arbitrary arrest/ detention

Timeline

21 August 2025 - The SCC overturned Manahel al-Otaibi's 11-year jail term but handed a new five-year one (followed by a five-year travel ban). It was significant that for the first time in several years the Saudi authorities granted several embassy officials who requested it access to her trial hearing.
22 July 2025 - She is again denied family contact, raising further concerns about her wellbeing.
December 2024 - April 2025 - She was forcibly disappeared.
3 November 2024 - The family of al-Otaibi learned that the SCC Appeal Court has upheld the 11-year sentence against her. The prison administration has also callously filed a report against al-Otaibi and a fellow prisoner who acted kindly towards her.
Mid-September 2024 - She was exposed to further vicious abuse, this time being stabbed in the face with a sharp pen by an unknown woman. She required stitches, and was held in solitary confinement for two weeks, preventing her from sharing the news.
Early September 2024 - After a month held incommunicado, she has been able to contact her family again, and revealed she is being subjected to further abuse.
Early August 2024 - She is denied family contact, raising further concerns about her wellbeing.
9 January 2024 - She was sentenced to 11 years in prison in a secret hearing before the Specialised Criminal Court.
14 April 2024 - After more than four months held incommunicado, al-Otaibi called her family and told them that she is being held in solitary confinement, with a broken leg, and in inhumane conditions. She also spoke of the retaliation against her as a result of her sister Fouz’s advocacy for her.
5 November 2023 - She is denied family contact, raising further concerns about her wellbeing.
Late August 2023 - She is placed in solitary confinement without air conditioning.
26 July 2023 - She was due to appear before the Specialised Criminal Court (SCC) for the first session of her trial, but it was postponed without a new date being set.
16 November 2022 - She was arrested.