Saudi Arabia: Second woman sentenced to prison for posts on social media  

The longest sentence ever imposed

A woman from Saudi Arabia was sentenced to 45 years in prison for posts she posted on social media. This is the second case in just one month, with the previous woman being sentenced to 34 years in prison . The court convicted Nourah bint Saeed al-Qahtani for ” using the internet to tear apart the social fabric “.

Nothing in the court documents depicts violence or criminal activity. The charges against her are really vague. They use the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Cybercrime Act, which can outlaw any post even slightly critical of the government. – Abdullah Alaoudh, head of rights organization Dawn

Recently, several female activists have been detained and awaiting trial in connection with social media posts they made last year.

The Saudi government is sending a resounding message to the West that it does not care about human rights. It is almost impossible not to connect the dots between Joe Biden’s visit and his meeting with the heir to the throne last month, with this increase in harassment attacks.

The current sentence is the longest ever handed down to a peace activist in the country.