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The fifth session of the ongoing trial of Dr. Abdulkareem al-Khudar, a co-founder of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association, was held today; and as in the previous session, the judge continued to refuse to allow women to attend the public trial, saying that they shall stay at home.
Saudi Arabian authorities detained yet another member of the country's defiant leading human rights organisation, the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA). Umar Al-Saeed is the seventh ACPRA member to be detained since the kingdom initiated a crackdown on human rights activists in 2012.
Omar Al-Saeed, a member in the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA), has been summoned for interrogation on April 22 and asked to re-appear next week. He is the latest in a series of human rights activists being interrogated and on trial in Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this month, BBC reported that Saudi Arabia is building a 1,000-mile fence on its border with Yemen. The news was barely reported in Saudi national press, but it was widely and critically reported in Yemeni press. The development was debated tensely in the Saudi Twittersphere. Supporters cited its absolute necessity for the safety of the kingdom while opponents spoke about the tighter siege it will impose on the Yemeni people.
Following last month's court ruling to dissolve the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA) and to confiscate its (nonexistent) properties, a group of activists yesterday announced a new independent association called the Union for Human Rights. Among its stated goals, the association is seeking an end to deterrent executions, an issue rarely raised in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia, an Enemy of the Internet, is threatening to block a number of popular communication tools, such as Skype and mobile messaging service WhatsApp, unless the operating companies agree to infringe on the privacy of users and monitor them.
Saudi Arabia's Information and Culture Minister Abdelaziz Khoja allegedly threatened to sue a Twitter user – for insulting him on the microblogging platform. The user called the minister a "remote control" in the hands of those with money and power and the minister responded that he could sue him, if he confessed his name.
A Saudi Prince said today that a rational man would not tolerate women going to the streets [in protest]. The comments, by the deputy governor of Qassim province Faisal bin Mishal, follow the crackdown on a sit-in by women, who called for the fall of the Saudi Interior Minster last Monday. The women, some with their children, as well as citizens who helped them during their protest, are now under arrest.
When a Day of Rage was called for in Saudi Arabia back on March 11, 2011, only a handful of protesters challenged the heavy police presence and protested. Khaled al-Johani was the only one of them on tape. He was arrested on the same day and was held until 25 July, 2012. Many thought that he received a pardon. However, last Monday, the Riyadh Criminal Court held a session to issue the verdict in his case.
Earlier today, February 20th, the first hearing session for Saudi Political and Civil Rights Association (ACPRA) co-founder Dr Abdulkareem al-Khadr was held at Criminal Court in Buraidah. Among his "crimes" are "calling for and inciting to break the law, spread chaos and disturb public tranquility and safety by writing and publishing a statement that calls for protesting in public squares."
Nora Abdulkarim shares a Saudi-American perspective on the Boston Bombings.
She explains:
I won't try to simplify what is inherently complex. I will simply present and reflect, and nothing more. No fancy theorizing, no overarching message. This post is only meant to be a glimpse at personal identity – that wild thing which one cannot pin down.
At Riyadh Bureau, Ahmed Al Omran sums up Twitter reactions from Saudis living/studying in the US following the Boston Marathon bombings here.
Arwa al-Hujaili has become Saudi Arabia's first female legal trainee – or three years of apprenticeship ahead before she earns her full legal licensure to become a lawyer. Free Arabs has more here.
Saudi student Wael Omar Moathen shares this eyewitness account [ar] of his experience at the Boston Marathon bombing. Ahmed Al Omran offers a translation here:
Like any human being who lives in this city, I picked up my camera and headed to Mile 26, the last mile in the race. I was taking photos and enjoying the cheers.
Click on the link above to read his experience as the horror unfolds.
Doha News charts reactions from Qatar residents following the aftershocks of an earthquake which hit southern Iran today. The aftershocks were also felt in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, where offices in high rise buildings were evacuated.
On Riyadh Bureau, Ahmed Al Omran writes:
A member of the Saudi Shoura Council said today that he is going to sue a conservative writer for attacking him on Twitter. Shoura member Issa al-Ghaith said that “due to the escalation of offenses on Twitter and the necessity of legal action” he is going to sue Abdullah al-Dawood, a Saudi conservative writer based in Riyadh, for accusing him of “demanding secularism” after al-Ghaith spoke in positive terms about lifting the ban on women driving.
The Shura council is a 150-member advisory body, appointed by the king, which cannot pass or impose laws and women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.
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