Dr. Abdullah Basfar: Four Years Behind Bars

These days mark the fourth anniversary of the arrest of Dr. Abdullah Basfar by Saudi authorities in August 2020, following his acceptance of an invitation to lead prayers at the Hagia Sophia Mosque in Istanbul.

On October 12, 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh sentenced Dr. Basfar to 12 years in prison after a secret trial in which he was not allowed to appoint a lawyer. In a related context, the Saudi authorities also arrested reciter Amer Al-Muhellal in July 2021 for managing Dr. Basfar’s social media accounts.

SANAD Human Rights Organisation expresses its regret over the continued detention of Dr. Abdullah Basfar without any legal justification and calls on the Saudi authorities to immediately release him and Amer Al-Muhellal unconditionally.