Saudi Student Face Death Penalty for Pro-Democracy Views

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By Kody Fairfield

A student from Saudi Arabia, arrested 5 years ago, is potentially facing beheading for his alleged participation in a pro-democracy rally.

Mujtaba Al-Sweikat was only 17 when he was arrested at the King Fahd International Airport in 2012 for allegedly attending a pro-democracy rally earlier in the same year. The Free Press explains that Al-Sweikat was at the airport because he had been accepted to attend Western Michigan University.

According to Reprieve, an international human rights group with offices in New York and London, Al-Sweikat’s application was confirmed as was his acceptance letter, which was obtained by the Free Press.

Western Michigan also confirmed Al-Sweikat had been accepted to the university in 2013, but never attended, explained the Free Press.

“We were stunned to learn, for the first time today, of this situation,” Western Michigan spokeswoman Cheryl Roland said in a statement to the Free Press. “It is not unusual for an admitted student to opt out of enrolling at the last minute, so we had no idea there was such a troubling reason behind this student’s failure to come to campus.”

Maya Foa, director of Reprieve, has called the situation “extremely worrying,” and a “breach of international law.”

“The increasingly brutal Saudi Arabian regime has ramped up executions for protest-related offences in recent days, and this latest move is extremely worrying,” said Foa, according to the Free Press. “Mujtaba was a promising 17-year-old boy on his way to study in Michigan when he was arrested, beaten, and later sentenced to death on the basis of a ‘confession’ extracted through torture. He now faces the imminent threat of beheading along with 14 others, including at least one other juvenile and a young disabled man.”

Foa and Reprieve are have since urged action from US President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to  “use their close ties to Saudi Arabia to make clear that these egregious abuses must stop — and the imminent executions be immediately stayed,” reports the Free Press.

The Free Press also reports that the American Federation of Teachers also urged Trump to get involved.

“Saudi Arabia’s threat to behead its own citizens for attending an anti-government protest is an unthinkable and despicable violation of international law and basic humanity,” AFT President Randi Weingarten said in a statement, reports the Free Press. “This group includes two youths — one of whom, Mujtaba’a al-Sweikat, was at the airport coming to the United States to attend college when he was arrested — a man with disabilities, and 11 other people. People must have a right to speak and associate freely. Should these executions occur, Saudi Arabia should be considered a pariah nation by the world.

“We implore President Trump, as the standard-bearer for our great nation, to do everything in his power to stop the atrocities that may otherwise take place in Saudi Arabia.”

The university itself has also joined the calls for action saying, “The AFT information makes it clear that the critical national political figures with influence in such a situation are informed,” Roland said. “We join the AFT in urging them to use that influence to ask the Saudi government to exhibit compassion,” according to the Free Press.

Reprieve explains, per the Free Press, that during Al-Sweikat’s detention, he has been withheld from legal counsel, and has been forced to sign a confession statement. His refusal to do so allegedly resulted in brutal beatings and torture.

The Free Press and Reprieve explain that Al-Sweikat and others were sentenced to death by Saudi Arabia’s controversial Specialised Criminal Court, which, although established to hear terrorism cases, has been used by authorities to silent dissent through the use of the death penalty.

Four others were executed July 12 for similar protest-related charges, according to the Free Press.

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