Tue Mar 18, 2014 9:31PM GMT
presstv.ir
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Saudi protesters demand the release of political prisoners in a demonstration in Eastern Province. (file photo)
A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced an anti-regime activist to seven years in prison for allegedly being involved in “terrorism riots” in the city of Qatif in the Eastern Province.
The defendant, who was not identified, had been convicted of being involved in several demonstrations in Qatif and not being a good citizen.
On Monday, the court found the defendant guilty of hurling Molotov cocktails and stones at the police and hindering policemen from carrying out their duties.
The Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh also banned the defendant from travelling outside the kingdom after the end of his jail term for seven years.
In a separate case, a Saudi appeals court upheld a 12-year jail sentence of a television channel owner for undermining the state and seeking to incite unrest. He was also banned from traveling abroad for 20 years.
The defendant was found guilty of producing programs on the internet that alleged terrorism and Al Qaida were Saudi creations and that the kingdom was abusing foreign residents and robbing them of their rights.
Eastern Province has been the scene of violent clashes between anti-regime protesters and Saudi forces for some three years.
Riyadh has strictly banned any gatherings across the kingdom. Several people have died in the regime crackdown on protests.
Activists say there are over 30,000 political prisoners in Saudi Arabia.
In October 2013, Amnesty International censured Saudi authorities for not addressing the “dire human rights situation” in the kingdom.
The rights group also handed in a paper to the United Nations, which included information regarding a “new wave of repression against civil society, which has taken place over the last two years.”
PG/AS/MHB
presstv.ir
Saudi protesters demand the release of political prisoners in a demonstration in Eastern Province. (file photo)
A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced an anti-regime activist to seven years in prison for allegedly being involved in “terrorism riots” in the city of Qatif in the Eastern Province.
The defendant, who was not identified, had been convicted of being involved in several demonstrations in Qatif and not being a good citizen.
On Monday, the court found the defendant guilty of hurling Molotov cocktails and stones at the police and hindering policemen from carrying out their duties.
The Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh also banned the defendant from travelling outside the kingdom after the end of his jail term for seven years.
In a separate case, a Saudi appeals court upheld a 12-year jail sentence of a television channel owner for undermining the state and seeking to incite unrest. He was also banned from traveling abroad for 20 years.
The defendant was found guilty of producing programs on the internet that alleged terrorism and Al Qaida were Saudi creations and that the kingdom was abusing foreign residents and robbing them of their rights.
Eastern Province has been the scene of violent clashes between anti-regime protesters and Saudi forces for some three years.
Riyadh has strictly banned any gatherings across the kingdom. Several people have died in the regime crackdown on protests.
Activists say there are over 30,000 political prisoners in Saudi Arabia.
In October 2013, Amnesty International censured Saudi authorities for not addressing the “dire human rights situation” in the kingdom.
The rights group also handed in a paper to the United Nations, which included information regarding a “new wave of repression against civil society, which has taken place over the last two years.”
PG/AS/MHB