The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights and Advocates for Human Rights stated that tracking the facts and information in Saudi Arabia reveals a contradiction between what the official delegation promoted during the Universal Periodic Review sessions and what is happening on the ground.
In an intervention delivered by researcher Duaa Dhainy from the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights during the discussion of the Human Rights Council's Item 6 and the review of Saudi Arabia's Universal Periodic Review report on June 4, 2024, the organizations noted that since the beginning of the year, Saudi Arabia has executed 87 people.
The speech clarified that among those executed, three were accused in drug-related cases, which Saudi Arabia had promised to halt and reduce, and 20 of the executions were carried out based on sentences issued by the notoriously bad Specialized Criminal Court for terrorism.
The intervention pointed out that it is impossible to know the actual number of detainees sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia due to the lack of transparency and the absence of any role for civil society within the country. For example, no women currently facing death sentences have been documented, although two women have been executed since the beginning of the year. Nevertheless, the organizations have documented 70 cases where detainees are facing death sentences. Most of them are charged with expressing opinions, exercising legitimate rights, and protesting. This contradicts the claims of the official Saudi delegation, which stated that the country has reserved the death penalty only for the most serious crimes.
Dhainy emphasized that among those at risk are at least nine minors, despite Saudi Arabia's claim that it had enacted a historic reform by passing a law setting the maximum penalty for minors at 10 years in prison. The organizations concluded that the Universal Periodic Review is an important occasion to uncover the facts and push Saudi Arabia to adhere to its international commitments, rather than using international platforms to whitewash its image and promote unrealistic reforms.