Saudi Arabia Jails Leeds University Student For 34 Years For Having A Twitter Account

34-Year-Old Salma al-Shebab has been accused of using Twitter to cause public unrest and destabilize civil and national security by posting tweets calling for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. She also sometimes retweets posts from dissident activists who were living in exile. 

“Freedom for Loujain Al-Hathloul. Freedom for all prisoners of conscience. Your freedom is my first wish for this New Year. Happy New Year,” Her re-tweet read. 

Salma was also accused of providing succor to those seeking to disrupt public order and undermine the general public’s safety and stability of the state by publishing false and tendentious rumors on Twitter. She was arrested in January 2021 while on holiday in Saudi Arabia, just days before she planned to return to the United Kingdom. 

Salma’s religious identity as a Shi’a Muslim is believed to have influenced her arrest and sentencing. 

The mom of two young sons aged four and six was sentenced to six years in Prison, but a Saudi terrorism court increased the jail term to 34 years after the activist appealed her sentence. After serving her jail term, the Ph.D. student at Leeds University will also face a 34-Year travel ban. In sentencing, the court cited Salma’s social media activity.

Her activity included a tweet supporting women’s rights in Saudi Arabia and expressing solidarity with imprisoned activists such as Loujain-al-Hathloul.

The Saudi case manager at the US-based human rights organization, Dr. Bethany Al-Haidari, said of Salma’s sentencing: “Saudi Arabia has boasted to the world they are improving women’s rights and creating legal form, but there is no question with this abhorrent sentence that the situation is only getting worse.”

Al-Haidari added: “Ity, no surprise the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman feels more empowered than ever in presiding over such egregious right violations.”