Advocacy / Saudi Arabia
Ten years after his arbitrary arrest, NGOs call for Saudi human rights defender Waleed Abu al-Khair to be released
Monday, 15 April 2024 marks the tenth anniversary of the arrest of Saudi human rights defender Waleed Abu al-Khair, who is serving a 15-year prison sentence as a result of his peaceful human rights activism. He has repeatedly been ill-treated in prison, including being denied vital medical care.
New assault on freedom of expression, thought and belief as Saudi authorities put football fans on trial for chants
MENA Rights Group joins 8 civil society organisations in condemning Saudi authorities' prosecution of football fans for their chants during a recent match under the repressive Anti-Cybercrime Law.
CSOs express deep concern at the systematic human rights violations in Saudi Arabia
On March 15, 2024, Right Livelihood, ALQST for Human Rights and MENA Rights Group delivered a joint oral statement before the Human Rights Council (HRC), during the general debate of its 55th session, highlighting the systematic human rights violations committed by Saudi authorities.
Bulgaria should not deport Saudi activist Abdulrahman al-Khalidi and should immediately release him
MENA Rights Group joins a coalition of civil society organisations in urging Bulgarian authorities not to deport Abdulrahman al-Khalidi, a Saudi activist currently detained in Bulgaria. The organisations further call on Bulgarian authorities to release him from detention and reconsider his asylum application.
IWD 2024: CSOs renew their call on Saudi authorities to release jailed women’s rights activists
On International Women's Day 2024, MENA Rights Group led a coalition of civil society organisations in renewing our call on Saudi authorities to release women human rights defenders, women’s rights activists and their supporters who are detained in contravention of international human rights standards. We further urge the authorities to lift travel bans on any women activists and to abolish the male guardianship system.
Saudi Arabia’s human rights record assessed during its fourth UPR session
During its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on January 22, 2024, Saudi Arabia received 377 recommendations from 136 States on various issues including the right to freedom of expression, the prohibition of torture, and the death penalty. States also used this opportunity to call on the authorities to reform the country’s counter-terrorism framework.
Saudi Human Rights Commission a mere whitewashing tool, say NGOs
MENA Rights Group, ALQST for Human Rights and the European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights publish an in-depth report detailing the Saudi Human Rights Commission's role in whitewashing the Kingdom's egregious human rights abuses.
Civil society urges BIE Member States not to vote for Saudi Arabia to host the World Expo 2030
A coalition of civil society organisations led by MENA Rights Group urges the Bureau International des Expositions’ Member States not to vote for Saudi Arabia to host the World Expo in 2030 given the Kingdom’s documented and internationally recognised appalling human rights record.
Saudi human rights defender Mohammed al-Qahtani still disappeared after one year
Marking 1 year since the forcible disappearance of human rights defender Mohammed al-Qahtani, MENA Rights Group joins civil society organisations in calling on Saudi authorities to clarify his fate and whereabouts, to allow him contact with his family and to release him immediately and unconditionally.
UN Human Rights Council must hold Saudi Arabia accountable for enforced disappearances
With Right Livelihood and ALQST for Human Rights, we delivered a joint oral statement during the 54th session of the Human Rights Council to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. In this statement, we raised the case of Saudi human rights defender Mohammed al-Qahtani, who has been forcibly disappeared since October 2022, and called on Saudi Arabia to end its widespread practice of enforced disappearance.