On 1 September 2014 the Court of Appeal in Jeddah upheld the sentence of human rights defender Raif Badawi. He was sentenced on 7 May 2014 to 10 years in prison, 1000 lashes and a 10 year travel ban to start on expiration of his jail sentence, a ban on using media outlets and a fine of one million Saudi Riyals (about US$266,600).
Raef Badawi is co-founder and editor of the website Liberal Saudi Network, a website and on-line forum created to foster political and social debate in Saudi Arabia. He has been detained since 17 June 2012 in a prison in Briman in Jeddah. His sentence stemmed from the creation of the website and his calls for reforms in the Kingdom. [Gulf Centre for Human Rights] Read more
