RIYADH (Dispatches) – Saudi authorities have extended a prison sentence handed down to a dissident religious scholar amid a crackdown led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman against activists in the kingdom.
The Prisoners of Conscience, an independent nongovernmental organization advocating human rights in Saudi Arabia, announced in a post on its official Twitter page that the so-called Court of Appeal in the capital Riyadh had ordered Sheikh Mohammed Mousa al-Sharif to serve eight more years behind bars, extending his jail term to 13 years.
Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court had leveled nearly two dozen charges, including “attempts aimed at undermining national security” and “participation in unlawful activities inside and outside the kingdom” against the dissident preacher.
Sheikh Sharif was reportedly arbitrarily arrested and is now suffering from various diseases due to medical negligence.
He used to work as a university professor, preacher, and pilot. He has written several books on Islamic teachings, the lifestyle of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), history, and Arabic literature.
Since bin Salman became Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader in 2017, the kingdom has arrested hundreds of activists, bloggers, intellectuals, and others for their political activism, showing almost zero tolerance for dissent even in the face of international condemnation of the crackdown.
Muslim scholars have been executed and women’s rights campaigners have been put behind bars and tortured as freedom of expression, association, and belief continue to be denied by the kingdom’s authorities.
Over the past years, Riyadh has also redefined its anti-terrorism laws to target activism.