Saudi Arabia's criminal court has sentenced the country's prominent women's rights activist, Loujain al-Hathloul, to five years and eight months in prison on charges of committing and financing terrorism, with the verdict being suspended for almost three years
DOHA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th December, 2020) Saudi Arabia's criminal court has sentenced the country's prominent women's rights activist, Loujain al-Hathloul, to five years and eight months in prison on charges of committing and financing terrorism, with the verdict being suspended for almost three years.
Human rights defenders have accused the country's authorities of detaining and torturing al-Hathloul, who was detained without formal charges in May 2018. She has been famous in the kingdom for her campaign against the ban of women from driving, which was lifted in June 2018, and the male guardianship system, where a woman was required to obtain an approval from her male guardian for various activities, including accessing health care, getting a job, traveling or getting married.
"The Riyadh Specialized Criminal Court has found Loujain al-Hathloul guilty of being involved in a number of criminal acts under the law on fighting terrorism and its financing. The court sentenced her to five years and eight months in jail. The judge of the criminal court confirms that the defendant admitted to committing the crimes that she was accused of, and her confession was documented voluntarily and without coercion," according to the ruling, cited by the Ajel news website.
The ruling however granted suspension of the sentence for a period of two years and 10 months to give her the chance to reform. In case she commits any offense within the next three years, the sentence will come into force.
The rights of women in Saudi Arabia, an ultraconservative kingdom on the Arabian peninsula, have been limited even in comparison to other nations across the Muslim world. Human rights groups have repeatedly criticized Saudi authorities for suppressing women's rights activists.
