Watan-A Saudi Islamic preacher, detained since 2018 and suffering from complete disability, faces prison conditions amounting to torture, according to a group of United Nations experts.
The preacher Safar al-Hawali, 76, one of the prominent figures of the “Awakening” movement, the Salafist social movement born in the 1980s in Saudi Arabia, is among the religious figures detained by Saudi Arabia after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman assumed the crown prince in 2017.
Marcus Sheff, a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, said in a statement: “Al-Hawali has been subjected to a wide range of human rights violations over the past six years, including enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, denial of the right to proper legal procedures, denial of the right to health, as well as acts of torture or inhuman treatment,” according to Agence France-Presse.
The experts’ statement came after they reviewed a complaint filed by al-Hawali’s nephew, in which he said his uncle had been detained since 2018 as a punishment for “peacefully criticizing the Crown Prince,” the de facto ruler of the kingdom.
🔴 هام
تقرير جديد للأمم المتحدة تؤكد فيه أن المعتقل الشيخ #سفر_الحوالي يواجه “انتهاكات حقوقية خطيرة”؛ بما في ذلك “الاحتجاز التعسفي” و”التعذيب” و”سوء المعاملة”.
وأكد التقرير أيضا أن معاملة السلطات السعودية للحوالي “غير مناسبة” و”غير مبررة” و”غير منطقية”. pic.twitter.com/hvIYbS06Df— معتقلي الرأي (@m3takl) May 15, 2024
The experts’ statement mentioned that al-Hawali suffers from permanent disabilities as a result of strokes, affecting his communication, mobility, and ability for self-care.
It clarified that he is unable to speak, understand, or move independently, and his pelvic fracture and kidney failure require regular medical care.
The committee urged the Saudi authorities to promptly review the case of preacher Safar al-Hawali to ensure a fair and public trial in accordance with international standards, or release him.
Enforced disappearance
After his arrest in July 2018, al-Hawali’s family did not know his whereabouts for a period until the Saudi authorities responded to a request from the UN team concerned with cases of enforced disappearance.
Al-Hawali was interrogated under the “Counter-Terrorism and Terrorism Financing Law” enacted by Saudi Arabia at the end of 2017, months after the Crown Prince assumed his position.
فك الله أسر الشيخ سفر الحوالي، يقبع في سجون آل سعود لا لشيء سوى لموقفه المشرف من فلسطين، موقف أي مسلم سليم العقيدة. pic.twitter.com/82fhbjUDaQ
— mazen007 التطبيع_خيانة# (@mazen00711) May 13, 2024
Vague definition of terrorism
Human Rights Watch criticized the law, saying it includes a “vague definition of terrorism” that may allow “authorities to continue targeting peaceful criticism.”
It is believed that al-Hawali is imprisoned in the infamous Al-Ha’ir Prison in Riyadh and has not been tried at all.
Al-Hawali entered prison in the early 1990s after criticizing the close relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States during the Gulf War, which expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait in 1990.
In 1993, he was banned from giving public speeches and was imprisoned again in 1994 after being accused of attempting to incite public disobedience before being released later on.