Saudi Arabia: Continued Detention of Ahmed Abdulnasir Al-Howeiti and His Father Over Their Rejection of Forcible Displacement in Al-Huwaitat Lands

Saudi authorities continue to detain Ahmed Abdulnasir Al-Howeiti due to his opposition to the forced displacement policy targeting the Al-Huwaitat tribe as part of the NEOM megaproject. Ahmed was arrested in October 2020 while attending Prince Fahd bin Sultan University, after state security forces stormed the campus and arrested him arbitrarily.

In September 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh issued a harsh 20-year sentence against Ahmed, solely for refusing to leave his ancestral land and asserting his legitimate right to remain. Other members of his family were also subjected to unjust sentences: his father, Abdulnasir Al-Howeiti, was sentenced to 27 years, and his uncle, Mahmoud Al-Howeiti, received a 35-year sentence, all as part of a systematic campaign of repression targeting those who oppose the state’s eviction policies.

SANAD Human Rights Organization expresses deep concern over these serious violations committed by Saudi authorities against members of the Al-Huwaitat tribe. These cases exemplify the erosion of justice and the exploitation of the judiciary to silence peaceful dissent.

SANAD affirms that the detention of Ahmed Abdulnasir and his relatives constitutes a flagrant violation of international human rights law, and calls for their immediate and unconditional release, full compensation for the physical, psychological, and emotional harm they have suffered, and the launch of an independent international investigation into the forced evictions and associated human rights abuses linked to the NEOM project.