Uploaded October 2023 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
On Aug. 9, 2022, a Saudi court sentenced Salma al-Shehab to 34 years in prison to be followed by a travel ban of the same length under a range of charges under the counter-terrorism law in connection to tweets in support of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. Salma was later re-sentenced to 27 years.
Last year, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) along with four other organizations representing Salma Al-Shehab and Nourah al-Qahtani— ALQST for Human Rights, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Freedom Initiative, and MENA Rights Group — submitted a complaint to the UNWGAD and requested the group of experts to issue an Opinion on their cases.
In its Opinion, the UNWGAD found that the Saudi government had failed to establish a legal basis for the arrest and detention of al-Shehab and al-Qahtani.
Prior to her arrest, Salma al-Shehab had been vocal on Twitter in her support for human rights and women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia.
Chapters:
00:00:00 - Salma alab's Terrorism Charges
00:00:32 - A Normal Life Interrupted
00:01:05 - Selma's Fight for Women's Rights and Prisoners of Conscience
00:01:27 - Persecution of Twitter Activists
00:01:50 - Conviction and Sentencing
00:02:13 - Hunger Strike for Justice
00:02:39 - Complaint to the United Nations
00:03:00 - State Security and Forced Disappearances
00:03:43 - The Suppression of Freedom in Saudi Arabia
Learn more about our work at the Human Rights Foundation!
Website: hrf.org
X (formerly known as Twitter): twitter.com/HRF
Instagram: instagram.com/hrf
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hrf
Subscribe to HRF’s Substack: humanrightsfoundation.substack.com
Join us in promoting freedom where it’s most at risk!
Donate today: hrf.org/?form=donate
#SaudiArabia #HumanRights #SalmaCase #PoliticalPrisoners #WomensRights #FreeSpeech #ArbitrayDetention #Activism #Dissent #Injustice #SaudiCrackdown #SaudiFreedomFighters #CounterterrorismLaws #CyberCrimeLaws #UNComplaint #SalmaHungerStrike #MothersInPrison #PrisonersOfConscience #InjusticeinSaudi #34YearSentence #humanrightsfoundation #daretodissent
On Aug. 9, 2022, a Saudi court sentenced Salma al-Shehab to 34 years in prison to be followed by a travel ban of the same length under a range of charges under the counter-terrorism law in connection to tweets in support of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. Salma was later re-sentenced to 27 years.
Last year, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) along with four other organizations representing Salma Al-Shehab and Nourah al-Qahtani— ALQST for Human Rights, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), Freedom Initiative, and MENA Rights Group — submitted a complaint to the UNWGAD and requested the group of experts to issue an Opinion on their cases.
In its Opinion, the UNWGAD found that the Saudi government had failed to establish a legal basis for the arrest and detention of al-Shehab and al-Qahtani.
Prior to her arrest, Salma al-Shehab had been vocal on Twitter in her support for human rights and women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia.
Chapters:
00:00:00 - Salma alab's Terrorism Charges
00:00:32 - A Normal Life Interrupted
00:01:05 - Selma's Fight for Women's Rights and Prisoners of Conscience
00:01:27 - Persecution of Twitter Activists
00:01:50 - Conviction and Sentencing
00:02:13 - Hunger Strike for Justice
00:02:39 - Complaint to the United Nations
00:03:00 - State Security and Forced Disappearances
00:03:43 - The Suppression of Freedom in Saudi Arabia
Learn more about our work at the Human Rights Foundation!
Website: hrf.org
X (formerly known as Twitter): twitter.com/HRF
Instagram: instagram.com/hrf
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hrf
Subscribe to HRF’s Substack: humanrightsfoundation.substack.com
Join us in promoting freedom where it’s most at risk!
Donate today: hrf.org/?form=donate
#SaudiArabia #HumanRights #SalmaCase #PoliticalPrisoners #WomensRights #FreeSpeech #ArbitrayDetention #Activism #Dissent #Injustice #SaudiCrackdown #SaudiFreedomFighters #CounterterrorismLaws #CyberCrimeLaws #UNComplaint #SalmaHungerStrike #MothersInPrison #PrisonersOfConscience #InjusticeinSaudi #34YearSentence #humanrightsfoundation #daretodissent
