Saudi Arabia Issues New Sentence Against Activist Manahil Al-Otaibi: 5 Years in Prison Plus 5-Year Travel Ban

According to human rights and media sources, Saudi judicial authorities have issued a new sentence against activist Manahil Al-Otaibi, sentencing her to five years in prison, followed by a five-year travel ban, after overturning the previous 11-year sentence.

Al-Otaibi was summoned in November 2022 to Al-Sahafa Police Station in Riyadh, from where she was transferred the same day to Al-Malaz Prison. Since November 2023, she has been subjected to enforced disappearance, cut off from her family, and her place of detention concealed until she managed to contact a family member on April 14, 2024. During that call, she reported harsh prison conditions and revealed she had suffered a broken leg.

The Sanad Human Rights Organization expresses grave concern over the continued detention of Manahil Al-Otaibi, calling on Saudi authorities to immediately and unconditionally release her, to end the targeting of women human rights defenders, and to free all prisoners of conscience.