Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Saudi blogger Raif Badawi released from prison

Saudi blogger Raif Badawi released from prison

Badawi’s wife, Ensaf Haidar, says she has spoken to Badawi, who had served a 10-year sentence for “insulting Islam”.

The Saudi blogger Raif Badawi has been released from prison in Saudi Arabia after completing a ten-year prison sentence.

Badawi’s wife, Ensaf Haidar, who lives in Canada with the couple’s three children, announced the news on Twitter, and also said that she had spoken to Badawi via telephone after his release.

A Saudi security official also confirmed that Badawi was no longer in prison, and said that he had been “released today”.

Badawi was arrested and imprisoned in Saudi Arabia in 2012 under the country’s cybercrime law, after being charged with “insulting Islam” and setting up a liberal online forum.

He had criticised Saudi Arabia’s religious police on his blog, a force that has since seen its power clipped in recent years by the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and also called for an end to the role of religion in politics.

A court sentenced Badawi to 10 years in prison in 2014, as well as 1,000 lashes.

During his time in prison the 38-year-old Badawi became a cause celebre for activists calling for human rights reforms in Saudi Arabia, and won a Reporters Without Borders prize for press freedom.

It is unclear what the conditions of Badawi’s release are. His sentencing in 2014 also included a 10-year travel ban that would follow the end of his prison term.

“Raif Badawi is still blocked in Saudi Arabia, as he is banned from leaving the country for the next 10 years,” Amnesty International said in a statement. “He is also banned from using any social media for the next 10 years, which gravely limits his ability to express himself.”

FILE – Badawi’s wife, Ensaf Haidar, has called for his release from Canada, where she lives with the couple’s three children

“Cruel and inhuman” punishment


Badawi received his first whipping of 50 lashes in January 2015, but the rest were suspended after global condemnation.

The United Nations had described the penalty as “cruel and inhuman”. Saudi Arabia eventually abolished flogging in April 2020.

Badawi suffered health problems during his imprisonment.

Ensaf Haidar, his wife of 20 years, said in 2018 that she and their three children had not seen him for nearly eight years. They are now Canadian citizens.

“I hope one day to live normally with my children and my husband,” Haidar said last week.

“He is an open-minded man, he loves freedom, he likes women to be independent,” she added.

If Badawi is allowed to leave Saudi Arabia, he will be able to live in Canada after legislators voted unanimously to grant him citizenship.

The issue has vexed relations between Saudi Arabia and Canada, which called for the release of jailed activists in 2018. In retaliation, Riyadh expelled the Canadian ambassador, froze trade with Ottawa and moved Saudi scholarship students to other countries.

But last year, the kingdom started releasing a number of rights activists in response to global pressure, including Loujain al-Hathloul in February 2021 followed by Raif’s sister Samar Badawi and Nassima al-Sadah last June.

However, the released activists still face restrictions. Al-Hathloul, who had campaigned to legalize driving for women in Saudi Arabia, remains banned from travel and has a three-year suspended sentence.

Many political prisoners remain in Saudi prisons, including the Muslim scholar Salman al-Awdah and the economist Essam al-Zamel.

On Tuesday the United States called on Saudi Arabia to review cases of “prisoners of conscience” and lift travel bans and other restrictions placed on released prisoners, during a United Nations Human Rights Council debate in Geneva.

A Saudi diplomat told the forum that no individuals had been arrested or detained for “exercising the right to freedom of speech or defending human rights” and called the allegations “unfounded”.


Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
×