Saudi jails rights activist for 15 years: Relatives

Dubai: A Saudi court on Monday sentenced to 15 years in jail a prominent rights lawyer described by Amnesty as a prisoner of conscience, relatives said in a statement posted on Twitter.

The tweet said that Waleed Abulkhair, who has had many run-ins with the authorities over his activism and for allegedly insulting authorities, was also banned from travelling abroad for 15 years and fined 200,000 riyals (around USD 54,000).

His wife, Samar Badawi, in a telephone interview, stressed that Abulkhair contested the ruling and refused to recognise it.

"Waleed does not recognise the legitimacy of this court, refuses to accept its verdict and has no intention to appeal," as allowed under the law, said Badawi.

He was convicted on a series of charges, she said, including "undermining the regime and officials" as well as "inciting public opinion" and "undermining judicial authorities".

Abulkhair has been under arrest since April 16.

On bail for having held unauthorised meetings of reformists, he was ordered to be put under arrest as he attended a fifth hearing, accused of insulting authorities in the ultra-conservative kingdom.

Rights group Amnesty International at the time called for his immediate release, saying he was being clearly punished "for his work protecting and defending human rights".

"He is a prisoner of conscience and must be released immediately and unconditionally," said Amnesty's Said Boumedouha.

He called the lawyer's detention "a worrying example of how Saudi Arabian authorities are abusing the justice system to silence peaceful dissent."

Badawi said on Monday that her husband is already facing other trials in cases linked to his activism, including for founding a rights group -- the Monitor of Human Rights in Saudi Arabia -- without a permit.

Abulkhair submitted a request to authorities to launch the MHRSA but never received a reply. He eventually set it up on Facebook and has attracted thousands of members.

In October, he was sentenced to three months in prison for "insulting the judiciary" and a petition he signed two years ago criticising the authorities.

That same month he was briefly held for setting up an "unauthorised" meeting place where pro-reform activists gathered, but was later freed on bail.