A Saudi humanitarian aid worker's anonymous Twitter account used for satire about Saudi Arabia's economy landed him in prison in the kingdom over three years ago. The case, spanning from San Francisco to Riyadh, reveals Saudi Arabia's continued efforts at suppressing criticism of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and shines a spotlight on the lengths to which the kingdom has gone to target perceived critics. For Areej al-Sadhan, a dual Saudi-U.S. citizen living in California, the saga began on March 12, 2018, when plain-clothed security forces entered the office of the Red Crescent in Riyadh, where her younger brother, Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, was working.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A Saudi humanitarian aid worker's anonymous Twitter account used for satire about Saudi Arabia's economy landed him in prison in the kingdom over three years ago.
For Areej al-Sadhan, a dual Saudi-U.S. citizen living in California, the saga began on March 12, 2018, when plain-clothed security forces entered the office of the Red Crescent in Riyadh, where her younger brother, Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, was working.“It was like he disappeared off the face of the earth ... there was no trace of him at all,” she said.
Then, in February 2020, nearly two years after his disappearance, a relative's phone rang. It was al-Sadhan. He confirmed he was alive and being held in al-Ha'ir Prison on the outskirts of the Saudi capital. A year later, he called again to tell them he would be released soon. Rights activists say at the time of al-Sadhan’s arrest in early 2018, several other Saudis who ran anonymous Twitter accounts critical of the government were also detained in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia has not commented on their arrests.against three men accused of acting on behalf of the Saudi government as secret agents throughout 2015.that Ahmad Abouammo, a U.S.
Back in Riyadh, al-Sadhan is being kept in solitary confinement with only a court appointed lawyer allowed to defend him. His father has only been able to speak to him briefly in court in the presence of guards.