The Court of Appeal of Saudi Arabia approved the sentence to imprison the minor, Sajjad al-Yassin, for 35 years, and prevented him from travelling for a similar period.
The sentence issued against the Yassin family flagrantly violates Juvenile Law. This stipulates in Article 15 that “if the crime is punishable by death, it shall be punished by confinement to the home for a period not exceeding ten years.” Therefore, the maximum possible sentence for minors is 10 years. The ruling affirms that no legal promises and reforms made by Saudi Arabia can be trusted in light of the blatant flaws that restrict or prevent their implementation in a way that protects human rights.
And Sajjad al-Yassin (October 26, 1997), was arrested on August 30, 2017, while returning from an entertainment trip in Bahrain, at 19 years and 10 months.
Al-Yassin was placed in solitary confinement in the Dammam Investigation Prison. He remained for months under investigation, where he was subjected to various types of violations, and forced to sign confessions dictated by the interrogator.
A year after his arrest, in August 2019, his trial began with a group of 6 people before the Specialized Criminal Court. The Public Prosecution charged him with several charges, including belonging to a terrorist organization that aims to rebel against the state and carry out terrorist acts, participating in demonstrations and gatherings, chanting slogans against the state and burning tires, participating in shooting security men and covering up wanted security personnel.
Among the charges brought against him was what happened four years before his arrest when he was 16 years old. Based on his confession and those of other detainees. The Saudi government's prosecution demanded that he be executed.
Before the judge, Sajjad denied the charges and confirmed they were extracted under torture. He also indicated that there is no evidence for the charges and that they are based mostly on his confessions and those of other detainees.
The judge did not investigate Yassin's allegations, and although his charges are not relevant, including those directly related to expressing an opinion and participating in demonstrations, he was sentenced to seventy years, divided between imprisonment and a travel ban.
The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights believes that the harsh sentence against Sajjad Al Yassin confirms Saudi Arabia's violation of its domestic laws, especially the Juvenile Law. It also violates Saudi Arabia's obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention against Torture.
ESOHR indicates that Saudi Arabia continues to issue death sentences and very harsh sentences against citizens who face charges when they were less than 18 years old. According to the organization's monitoring, at least 9 minors face the death penalty. In addition, it continues to arrest and issue prison sentences of more than 10 years against minors.