People visiting Saudi Arabia for religious pilgrimages and tourism are being detained, subjected to unfair trials and sentenced to lengthy jail time over social media expression, according to a new report.
Amnesty International and Alqst published a report this week looking into the cases of at least nine people, mostly from Middle East and Global South countries of origin, detained over online posts.
The arrests took place between July 2022 and late last year.
One of the cases was that of Amr Abdelfattah, a French father of three, who was detained in June 2024 whilst performing the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
He was initially held for 11 months, before being put on trial in May 2025 over charges related to his online speech. Saudi authorities alleged that he had “insulted” the government and praised “prosecuted individuals”.
