A Leeds University student from Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to 34 years in prison for having a Twitter account and for following and retweeting human rights activists. Salma al-Shehab, a 34-year-old mother of two, had been completing her PhD in the UK when she travelled to Saudi Arabia to visit family in December 2020, and was later summoned by Saudi authorities for allegedly 'using a website to cause public unrest’.
In a special terrorist court this week, Shehab was sentenced to 34 years in prison followed by a 34-year travel ban. According to a translation of the court records, which were seen by the Guardian, charges include the allegation that Shehab was ‘assisting those who seek to cause public unrest and destabilise civil and national security by following their Twitter account’ and by re-tweeting tweets.
On Instagram, Shehab described herself as a dental hygienist, medical educator, PhD student at Leeds University and lecturer at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University. Her research focused on improving dental treatment for patients with disabilities. Shehab’s Twitter account had around 2,000 followers at the time she was arrested, with many of her tweets relating to her young children and feeling the Covid burnout. On some occasions, Shehab retweeted tweets by Saudi dissidents living in exile, which called for the release of political prisoners in the kingdom.
Experts say she was not a leading or vocal Saudi activist, but she tweeted support for Loujain al-Hathloul, a prominent Saudi feminist activist (who was previously imprisoned, is alleged to have been tortured for supporting driving rights for women, and is now living under a travel ban). It is believed that Shehab may still be able to seek a new appeal in the case.
The harrowing news comes weeks after US President Joe Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia, which human rights experts warned at the time could embolden the crown prince Mohammed bin Salman amid his escalating crackdowns on pro-democracy activists.
On Wednesday, a University of Leeds spokesperson said: ‘We are deeply concerned to learn of this recent development in Salma’s case and we are seeking advice on whether there is anything we can do to support her. Our thoughts remain with Salma, her family, and her friends among our close-knit community of postgraduate researchers.’
Friends of Shehab’s have described her as ‘very kind’, a supporter of human rights who believed her tweets would go unnoticed because she had few followers, according to the Guardian. They say she was not especially critical of the government and supported Prince Mohammed’s plan to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil and towards services such as health and tourism.
‘She [would] always stand with all human rights in Saudi or outside of Saudi,’ the friend, who wished to remain anonymous for their own safety, said. ‘She has a very kind personality and you cannot see her without a lovely smile on her face. She was happy with small steps towards women’s rights, like driving.’
The British government is yet to comment on Shehab's sentencing.