Saudi Arabia releases dual US-Saudi citizen from prison

by Editor3
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Saudi Arabia released US-Saudi dual national Saad Ibrahim Almadi from prison, more than a year after he was arrested for tweets critical of the kingdom, Almadiโ€™s son, Ibrahim, told CNN.

Almadi was released at 2 a.m. local time on Tuesday and is currently in Riyadh under a travel ban, said his son, who is based in the US.

The 72-year-old had been imprisoned in Saudi Arabia after being given a 16-year sentence for tweets critical of the Saudi government, the US State Department said in October.

โ€œHe is not free until he is in the (United) States,โ€ his son said.

Neither Saudi nor US officials immediately confirmed the release of Almadi and it remains unclear whether the kingdom would lift a travel ban it had imposed to allow Almadi to return to the US.

CNN has reached out to Saudi Arabiaโ€™s government for comment.

Abdullah Alaoudh, the Saudi Director at The Freedom Initiative, a Washington-based advocacy group, welcomed Almadiโ€™s release, saying โ€œhe should have never spent a day behind bars for innocuous tweets.โ€

Almadi was sentenced by Saudi Arabiaโ€™s Specialized Criminal Court over 14 tweets critical of the Saudi government that he posted while in the US, a Freedom Initiative statement said, adding that some of the tweets date back seven years.

โ€œThere are far too many people in Saudi detention who donโ€™t have the benefit of US citizenship to draw attention to their cases. Almadi was wrongfully detained, reportedly tortured, and released only after tireless campaigning by his son and international pressure,โ€ Alaoudh said.

โ€œAlmadiโ€™s release shows that strategic pressure works, and US officials should continue to press for release of prisoners and lifting of travel bans,โ€ Alaoudh added. (CNN)

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