Al Jazeera reports the latest on how Saudi Arabia crushes dissent.
In its report, Amnesty said the Specialized Criminal Court (SCC), established in 2008 for terror-related crimes, used as “an instrument of repression” as several journalists, activists, writers and religious leaders are facing trials under the anti-terror and anti-cybercrime laws.
Some 95 individuals, the vast majority of them men, were tried before the SCC between 2011 and 2019, according to the London-based group. Eleven are currently facing trials at the SCC and some 52 others were serving prison terms of between five and 30 years imposed by the same court. “The Saudi Arabian government exploits the SCC to create a false aura of legality around its abuse of the counter-terror law to silence its critics,” said Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Regional director.
Source: Saudi Arabia using terrorism tribunal to silence critics: Amnesty | News | Al Jazeera
