Dr. Saud Al-Hashimi Marks 19 Years in Saudi Prisons
On 2 February 2026, the nineteenth anniversary marks the arrest of Saudi academic and human rights activist Dr. Saud Al-Hashimi, who has remained detained since 2007 over his involvement in a project to establish an officially recognized human rights organization in Saudi Arabia.
On 2 February 2007, security forces raided a rest house belonging to lawyer Issam Basrawi in Jeddah and arrested Dr. Al-Hashimi using excessive force, due to his role in this human rights initiative, as well as his participation in drafting a political reform document that was intended to be submitted to the King of Saudi Arabia.
According to available information, Dr. Al-Hashimi was subjected to enforced disappearance for more than five months following his arrest, before details of his harsh detention conditions emerged. Human rights sources report that he endured multiple forms of torture, including beatings, electric shocks, sleep deprivation, and prolonged solitary confinement, in addition to being denied adequate medical care.
He was also deprived of family visits and contact, denied access to legal counsel, and withheld essential medication for chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. He was held in inhumane conditions, including the absence of bedding, exposure to extreme cold and heat, and being forced to stand for long hours. Sources indicate that he was subjected to both psychological and physical torture in an attempt to extract confessions.
After more than three years of detention without trial, Dr. Al-Hashimi’s trial began in February 2010 before the Specialized Criminal Court. He faced several charges, including planning to establish a political party, communicating with foreign entities, disobedience to the ruler, as well as accusations of defying the King and questioning the independence of the judiciary.
On 22 November 2010, the court sentenced Dr. Saud Al-Hashimi to 30 years in prison, followed by an additional 30-year travel ban, and imposed a fine of two million Saudi riyals. He remains detained to this day in Dhahban Prison in Jeddah.
SANAD Human Rights Organization condemns the continued detention of Dr. Saud Al-Hashimi and calls for his immediate and unconditional release, compensation for the harm he has suffered, an end to all forms of repression against citizens and residents in Saudi Arabia, and the release of all prisoners of conscience.
