يواجه الشاب حسن زكي الفرج خطر الإعدام تعزيرا، بتهم عدة بينها ما حصل حين كان قاصراً، في دلالة على زيف ادعاءات المملكة العربية السعودية الترويجية لوقف إعدام القاصرين. ومن بين سلسلة التهم التي وجهتها النيابة العامة السعودية إلى الفرج، المشاركة في مواجهات خلال مداهمة حصلت في أبريل 2015. كان الفرج يبلغ من العمر حينها 18 عاما، كما أن من بين التهم علاقة مع أحد المطلوبين قبل ست سنوات من الاعتقال، وهذه التهمة حصلت حين كان عمر الفرج 14 عاما. بالتالي فإن النيابة العامة تطلب الإعدام بحق الفرج على الرغم من كون التهم تعود إلى الوقت الذي كان فيه قاصرا.
Al Faraj was born on April 19, 1997 in al-Qatif. On November 28, 2017, Saudi security forces violently detained him from his home, shooting and arresting him after beating him and two of his brothers. Hassan and his brothers were severely tortured. His brothers were released later and he remains imprisoned in Dammam Mabahith prison.
From the moment of his arrest, Hassan al-Faraj was severely tortured, through beatings and electric shocks, leading to his transfer to hospital several times. To this day, he still suffers from foot pain from the to torture and he has been forced to sign confessions.
Al-Faraj was kept in solitary confinement for about 3 months from the moment of his arrest, during which he was unable to communicate with his family. After his release from solitary confinement, his family was able to visit him, and he still gets visits, but they are not regular.
During the three years of detention, the government denied al-Faraj access to a lawyer. In 2020, his case was referred to the Specialized Criminal Court. After the first hearing took place in Riyadh in October 2020, he was able to hire a lawyer. Since the beginning of his trial, Al-Faraj attended only two sessions, as he was not brought to some sessions under various pretexts.
Hassan al-Faraj was charged with several counts. In addition to the charges, which dates back to a time when he was a minor, the public prosecutor charged him with joining groups via telephone programs, possessing banned pictures, possessing weapons, joining a terrorist organization, harboring wanted individuals and assisting wounded people.
The public prosecutor demanded Hirabah sentence, and if it was rejected, they called for Tazir. The prosecution is demanding the death penalty, despite the fact that during the court hearings he asserted that his confessions were extracted under torture, despite the lack of other evidence, and that the charges did not include what are considered the most serious or violent charges.
The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights, believes that the case of the young man Hassan Zaki Al-Faraj is clear evidence of the lack of seriousness of Saudi Arabia's promises with regard to the suspension or reduction of the death sentences, especially against minors. According to the charges brought against him, Hassan Al-Faraj is a minor, and death penalty cannot be requested for him, therefore there are fears of Saudi manipulation in the case.
This raises concerns for other detainees facing a similar situation. Despite the official blackout on cases and information, the ESOHR in Saudi Arabia has monitored cases of minors still at risk of execution, including Jalal al-Labbad, Yousef al-Massef, and Sajjad al-Yaseen. Saudi Arabia executed the minor Mustafa al-Darwish in June 2021, months after confirming a moratorium on executions of minors. In response to the criticisms, it denied that al-Darwish was a minor, although official documents and the charges brought against him by the prosecution confirm that he was.
In addition, Al-Faraj faces execution on non-serious charges, and some of the charges against him allege he committed crimes under extortion. In addition, the trial lacked due process and he forcing him to sign confessions under torture.
ESOHR considers that the cases it is currently able to follow show that the bloody course of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia is on rise. This is proved by the numbers of executions carried out during the year 2021, which doubled from the year 2020. The organization stresses that the lack of confidence in the promises made by the Saudi government raises serious concerns for the lives of individuals currently detained, including minors, especially in light of the lack of transparency in dealing with the cases.