Three Saudi scholars to be executed for terrorism after Ramadan

Three prominent Saudi scholars held on multiple charges of terrorism will be sentenced to death and executed shortly after Ramadan, Aljazeera reports.

Government sources and one of the men’s relative on Tuesday confirmed the death sentences.

The most prominent of the scholars is Sheikh Salman al-Odah, an internationally renowned scholar who was arrested in September 2017 shortly after tweeting a prayer for reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbour Qatar, three months after Riyadh launched a blockade on the emirate.

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The other two, Awad al-Qarni, a Sunni preacher and author, and Ali al-Omari, a popular broadcaster were arrested in September 2017.

The detention of the three scholars has already provoked the condemnation of the United Nations and the US State Department, as well as rights groups Human Rights Watch (HRW), Reprieve and Amnesty International.

Ali al-Ahmad, A Saudi opposition figure and head of the US-based Institute for Gulf Affairs, Ali al-Ahmad, described the move to execute the men as a crime to terrorise the Saudi citizens into submission.

However, no comment has come from Saudi authorities concerning the planned execution.

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