It is not clear whether Saudi Arabia intends to vigorously pursue legal charges or release the activists under the cover of a judicial process.
By Kareem Fahim Kareem Fahim Istanbul bureau chief covering the Middle East Email Bio Follow March 1 at 6:39 PM Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor on Friday announced indictments against a group of women’s rights activists whose detentions for nearly a year without charge and alleged torture while in custody have been harshly criticized by human rights groups.
It was not immediately clear whether the indictments were evidence of Saudi Arabia’s intent to vigorously pursue legal charges or a way for the authorities to release the activists under the cover of a judicial process — and, by doing so, dispense with what has become a public relations problem for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s day-to-day ruler.
A resolution introduced by a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers in February called on Saudi Arabia to “immediately and unconditionally” release the women’s rights activists. In May, Saudi authorities began arresting activists who had campaigned to lift a female driving ban and accused them of undermining national security by colluding with unnamed foreign entities. Human rights groups dismissed the accusations as baseless and said the arrests — which came just weeks before the driving ban was lifted — were aimed at preventing Mohammed from being overshadowed in the public consciousness as a champion of women’s rights.
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