Saudi activists launch campaign for release of jailed cleric and his sons

Saudi activists have launched a campaign calling for the release of religious cleric Suleiman al-Duweish and his sons. 

Using the hashtag #أطلقوا_أبناء_الدويش (‘release the sons of Duweish’), the activists are urging Saudi authorities to free the cleric who was imprisoned in 2016, as well as his sons, who were imprisoned in the subsequent years. 

🧵Imagine your father has been disappeared for years, & you hear reports of him dying under torture. Your brother inquires abt him, & gets arrested. Your other brother calls the public prosecution to know what is going on, he also gets arrested. 1/2#أطلقوا_أبناء_الدويش https://t.co/Zsgz0OqzwO

— Lina Alhathloul لينا الهذلول (@LinaAlhathloul) August 19, 2022

The cleric's sons Abdulwahhab, Abdulrahman and Malik were arrested by Saudi authorities for enquiring about their father. 

Suleiman al-Duweish was apprehended by authorities in 2016 while on a business trip to Mecca. The preacher was reportedly arrested for tweets in which he pointed out the dangers of individuals giving their sons power and responsibility without accountability, which was perceived as criticism against King Salman and his son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. 

Malik al-Daweesh who was arrested days before Biden’s visit had recorded this video in case he was arrested.
He wants you not to forget him and his family’s plight #أطلقوا_أبناء_الدويش

pic.twitter.com/3fca7gasOz

— د. عبدالله العودة (@aalodah) August 17, 2022

According to multiple rights groups including the MENA Rights Group and ALQST, he was taken to the Royal Palace in Riyadh where he was beaten and abused by the crown prince.

He has been reportedly tortured by high-ranking officials in prison, and has since disappeared. 

Rights groups, such as Democracy in the Arab World Now (DAWN) tweeted a document from the Saudi interior ministry that acknowledges Duweish has been "under investigation" since 2016. 

وثيقة مصوّرة من الموقع الرسمي لوزارة الداخلية السعودية (بوّابة نافذة) تعترف فيه رسمياً بوجود سليمان الدويش في سجونهم وبأنه "تحت التحقيق" منذ إبريل ٢٠١٦م.
أبناء الدويش جرى اعتقالهم حينما سألوا الحكومة السعودية عن والدهم ومصيره.#اطلقوا_أبناء_الدويش pic.twitter.com/UHh3DOPhEF

— DAWN السعودية (@DAWNsaudi) August 23, 2022

Adbulwahhab was arrested multiple times, most recently in 2021 and his location currently remains unknown. His brother, Abdulrahman, was sentenced to two years in prison later in the same year. 

A third brother, Malik, was arrested in July 2022, days before US President Joe Biden visited the kingdom to meet with the crown prince.  

الحكومة #السعودية تقمع عائلة #سليمان_الدويش بالكامل⬇️ pic.twitter.com/N8ZE7dEW5l

— انفوجرافيك الدرعية (@dareiainfo) August 19, 2022

The campaign comes just days after the kingdom sentenced another prominent cleric, Sheikh Saleh al-Taleb - the former Imam of the Grand Mosque of Mecca - to ten years in prison. Al-Taleb was arrested in 2016, allegedly for a sermon in which he urged Muslims to speak out against evil. 

Saudi Arabia routinely imprisons preachers, activists, journalists and other dissidents. The kingdom has imprisoned dozens of dissidents perceived to have spoken out against the state over the past few years, especially since current crown prince seized power in 2017.