The Saudi Court of Appeal overturns the death sentence against retired teacher Mohammed Al-Ghamdi

In a new development in the case of retired teacher Mohammed Al-Ghamdi, SANAD has learned that the Court of Appeal has cancelled the death sentence issued against him in July 2023 by the Specialized Criminal Court, and no new sentence has been issued against him yet.

SANAD had documented and followed the case of Mohammed Al-Ghamdi, who was arrested by Saudi authorities in July 2022 over tweets on the X platform from an anonymous account followed by fewer than ten people. During his detention, he was subjected to mistreatment and deliberate medical neglect.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention had issued a decision condemning Al-Ghamdi’s arrest, deeming it arbitrary and classifying it as a crime against humanity. In a decision issued last month, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention also considered Al-Ghamdi’s arrest arbitrary and a violation of his human rights, necessitating his immediate release and the provision of necessary compensation. The Saudi authorities were given a six-month deadline to implement the decision.

SANAD Organisation for Human Rights welcomes the decision of the Court of Appeal to overturn the death penalty and calls on the Saudi authorities to comply with UN decisions and release Al-Ghamdi immediately and unconditionally, as his arrest was arbitrary and his continued detention and trial constitute a crime that violates international law.