Manahel al-Otaibi is serving an 11-year prison sentence in Saudi Arabia. A brave defender of women’s rights, a “terrorism” court gave her an incredibly harsh punishment merely for promoting women’s rights and expressing herself on social media.
Manahel finds strength and resilience in exercise, so much so that she became a fitness instructor herself. She is also an outspoken advocate for women’s rights. In recent years, Saudi Arabia’s authorities have made big claims about advancing women’s rights, and at first Manahel believed them. But in 2022, her world, and these hollow promises, came crashing down.
Manahel wrote tweets supporting women’s rights. She also posted pictures of herself enjoying a day at a shopping mall. In the pictures, she is not wearing the abaya, a traditional robe, and these things alone were enough for the authorities to target her.
Manahel was arrested and charged with violating Saudi Arabia’s Anti-Cyber Crime Law. Her case was referred to the counter-terrorism court, notorious for grossly unfair trials and draconian punishments. In January 2024, Manahel was sentenced to 11 years in prison in a secret hearing.
This harsh sentence, simply for sharing tweets and pictures of herself, has left Manahel deeply distressed. She has told her family she was beaten by another prisoner and then placed in solitary confinement. For months on end, she was forbidden from even communicating with her loved ones. Her family believes she may even have a broken leg for which she did not receive treatment, a debilitating injury that has only added to her misery.
After one month of incommunicado detention, Manahel managed to contact her family on 1 September 2024 and told them she was again being held in solitary confinement and brutally beaten by fellow prisoners and prison guards.
Her family and friends are very worried. Help them fight for Manahel and demand her immediate and unconditional release.
Sign the petition and demand that Manahel is immediately and unconditionally released, and all charges against her are dropped.
Pending her release, she must be granted immediate access to medical care, and her allegations of torture and other ill-treatment must be impartially investigated.