Saud Mukhtar al-Hashimi ( ar, سعود مختار الهاشمي, born 1964) is a Saudi Arabian doctor.

Biography

al-Hashimi graduated from

King Abdulaziz University King Abdulaziz University (KAU) ( ar, جامعة الملك عبد العزيز) is a public university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. With over 117,096 students in 2022, it is the largest university in the country. Located in south Jeddah, the univ ...

in 1988, then got his PhD from the

King Faisal University King Faisal University (KFU) ( ar, جامعة الملك فيصل ') is a public university with the main campus in the city of Hofuf in Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia founded in 1975. KFU was initially established with four colleges: two in Dammam and t ...

in 1993. He worked as a doctor in Jeddah, he also was a member of

World organization of family doctors The World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) is a global not-for-profit professional organization representing family physicians and general practitioners from all regions of the world. WONCA's mission is to improve the quality of life of the ...

. He wrote many essays in '' Al Madina''.

Arrest and trial

Al-Hashimi was arrested in

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...

in February 2007 along with eight other critics of the Saudi Arabian government (Musa al-Qirni, Suliaman al-Rashudi, Abdul Rahman Khan, Essam Basrawi, Saif al-Din al-Sharif, Fahd al-Qurshi, Abdul Rahman al-Shumayri) and who planned to form a political party or human rights organization. The men were detained without charge until August 2010. During his pre-trial detention, al-Hashimi went on hunger strike for a week, which reportedly caused his guards to strip him down to his underwear and leave him in a cold cell for several hours. He was then forced to confess to "contacting Al-Jazeera television station and to collecting money without the permission of the ruler". According to the

Islamic Human Rights Commission The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) is a non-profit organisation based in London. Its stated mission is to "work with different organisations from Muslim and non-Muslim backgrounds, to campaign for justice for all peoples regardless of ...

(IHRC), he was also tortured with

electric shocks Electrical injury is a physiological reaction caused by electric current passing through the body. The injury depends on the density of the current, tissue resistance and duration of contact. Very small currents may be imperceptible or produce ...

in November 2010. The nine were brought to trial in the

Specialized Criminal Court The Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) ( ar, المحكمة الجزائية المتخصصة) is a non- Sharia court created in Saudi Arabia in 2008 that tries suspected terrorists and human rights activists. On 26 June 2011, the court started tr ...

in 2011. Their lawyers were initially denied information on the charges against the men, and the court's sessions were closed to media and observers, leading Amnesty International to criticize the proceedings as "grossly unfair". Al-Hashimi found guilty by the

on charges including "disobeying Saudi Arabia’s king, forming an organization opposing the state, questioning the independence of the judiciary, money laundering and 'supporting terrorism'", and in November was sentenced to 30 years' imprisonment and a fine of 2 million riyals (US$534,000).

Imprisonment

During al-Hashimi's imprisonment, several international human rights groups campaigned on his behalf. The

United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) is a body of independent human rights experts that investigate cases of arbitrary arrest and detention. Arbitrary arrest and detention is the imprisonment or detainment of an individual, by a State, wi ...

found that his detention was arbitrary and illegal.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

designated him a prisoner of conscience and stated that al-Hashimi had been jailed for "peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression and association". The

International Federation for Human Rights The International Federation for Human Rights (french: Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'homme; FIDH) is a non-governmental federation for human rights organizations. Founded in 1922, FIDH is the third oldest international h ...

and

World Organisation Against Torture The World Organisation Against Torture (''Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture''; OMCT) is the world's largest coalition of non-governmental organisations fighting against arbitrary detention, torture, summary and extrajudicial executions, ...

issued a joint statement calling for "urgent intervention" into the case, including the immediate and unconditional release of al-Hashimi.

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

criticized the Saudi Arabian government for keeping al-Hashimi as a "political prisoner", stating that "recycling political prisoners won't appease demands for democratic change". The

Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK The Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) is a London-based British Muslim lobby and civil liberties group founded to address what it perceived as the under-representation of Muslims in British politics. The organisation is active primarily ...

described al-Hashimi and the other prisoners as "simply advocating peaceful reforms to the political system" and began a petition for their release. The IHRC reported that as of February 2012, al-Hashimi continued to be kept in solitary confinement following his conviction. In October 2012, Amnesty International reported that al-Hashimi's mother was seriously ill and believed herself to be dying; the organization issued an appeal that he be allowed to visit her at the hospital.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hashimi, Saud 1964 births Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Saudi Arabia Living people People from Jeddah King Abdulaziz University alumni King Faisal University alumni Saudi Arabian human rights activists Saudi Arabian prisoners and detainees