A PhD student from Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to 34 years in prison for following and retweeting dissidents and activists on Twitter, the Guardian reported, citing translated court documents. Salma al-Shehab, 34, was studying at the University of Leeds in the UK and went to Saudi Arabia on holiday in December 2020 when she was questioned by authorities, arrested and put on trial, The Guardian reported. Al-Shehab, who is married with two children, was convicted for the first time in three years for using a website to “incite public unrest and destabilize politics and national security,” the Guardian reported. But on Monday he was sentenced to more time by an appeals court for the Twitter accounts he followed and retweeted, the report said. She was given a total of 34 years in prison, followed by a 34-year travel ban, The Guardian reported. The Washington Post also reported on the sentence, as did Saudi Arabia’s European Organization for Human Rights and the US-based non-profit Freedom Initiative. Translated court documents seen by the Guardian said al-Shehab was accused of “assisting those who seek to cause public unrest and destabilize political and national security by following their Twitter accounts”. According to The Guardian, he had retweeted Saudi dissidents calling for the release of political prisoners held in Saudi Arabia. The Post reported that she also supported women’s right to drive, a policy allowed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2018, although activists remained imprisoned. The Guardian noted that al-Shehab did not have a large online following – she reportedly had around 2,500 followers – and was not known as an activist, with many of her tweets being about her children. He may be able to appeal, The Guardian said. Twitter declined to comment on al-Shehab’s case to the Guardian. The Saudi Arabian government has a significant investment in Twitter, The Guardian noted. Both Saudi Arabia’s European Organization for Human Rights and Freedoms said al-Shehab’s sentence was the longest prison sentence given to an activist and could signal more crackdowns on dissidents. Human rights groups say Saudi Arabia frequently arrests people who express disagreement with the government — sometimes years after they have made any public criticism. This included the arrest of dozens of people when Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MBS, became the heir to the throne in 2017. He has since been considered the de facto ruler of the kingdom. Two senior Saudis were arrested in 2020 for not supporting him, sources close to the royal family told The Associated Press at the time. MBS has also jailed several high-profile political figures he has seen as a threat to his power.
