Saudi cartoonist JAILED 23 years for ‘insulting drawings’

A Saudi artist has been sentenced to more than two decades in prison over political cartoons that allegedly insulted the Gulf kingdom’s leadership, his sister and a rights group said this week

Saudi cartoonist JAILED 23 years for ‘insulting drawings’

The case against Mohammed al-Hazza, 48, adds to concerns about freedom of expression under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as Saudi Arabia – the world’s largest crude oil exporter – seeks to open up to tourists and investors after years of isolation.

The father of five was arrested in February 2018 in Saudi Arabia during ‘a violent raid’ in which security forces entered his home and ransacked his studio, the London-based Sanad Human Rights Organisation said in a statement.

A court document seen by AFP says the charges against him concern ‘offensive cartoons’ he produced for the Qatari newspaper Lusail as well as social media posts that were allegedly ‘hostile’ to Saudi Arabia and supportive of Qatar.

Hazza’s arrest came less than a year after Saudi Arabia and several allies cut ties with Qatar, claiming it supported extremists and was too close to Iran – allegations that Doha denied. The countries mended ties in January 2021.

Saudi Arabia’s Specialised Criminal Court, set up in 2008 to deal with terrorism-related cases, initially sentenced Hazza to six years in prison.

But this year, as Hazza was preparing to be released, the case was re-opened and he was sentenced to 23 years, his sister Asrar al-Hazza told AFP by phone from the United States.

‘He was almost there… He almost left the prison. But then out of nowhere it was opened again and it was 23 years,’ she said.

Saudi authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the case on Wednesday.

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