Saudi Arabia: UN Experts Call For Immediate Release Of Child Offenders
'Enforcing a death sentence in violation of a State's obligations under international law amounts to arbitrary execution and is therefore unlawful,' the experts said.
The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) had previously stated in its opinion concerning Abdullah al-Derazi, Jalal al-Labbad, Yusuf Muhammad Mahdi al-Manasif, Jawad Abdullah Qureiris and Hassan Zaki al-Faraj that their deprivation of liberty was arbitrary as it had no proper legal basis.
The five individuals have been sentenced to death and face imminent execution.
'We call for the immediate release of the five individuals, to prevent any irreparable harm to their lives or personal integrity,' the experts said.
They had previously called for all necessary interim measures to be taken to halt the executions.
'Capital punishment and life imprisonment without possibility of release for offences committed by persons under the age of 18 are explicitly and strictly prohibited by the Convention on the Rights of the Child,' they said.
The Working Group found that the deprivation of liberty of these five individuals was arbitrary, as it resulted from their exercise of the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, and to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
'We had previously communicated to the government of Saudi Arabia our concerns about the fairness of the trial, as it was tainted by ill-treatment and torture, amounting to a violation of fair trial rights,' the experts said, adding that alleged forced confessions taint the entire trial process, regardless of whether other evidence was available to support the verdict.
The experts noted that the deprivation of liberty of the five individuals was likely due to their religious affiliation, as they belonged to the Shia minority.
'We are alarmed by the pattern of persecution and long history of discrimination against the Shia religious minority in Saudi Arabia,' they said.
'The situation is particularly worrying given the sharp increase in the number of executions carried out in Saudi Arabia, with some 65 executions carried out since the beginning of 2025,' the experts said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
20-07-2025
- Scoop
UN Experts Call For End To Anguish Of Families Seeking Truth About Disappeared Loved Ones In The OPT And Israel
GENEVA (18 July 2025) – About 4,000 Palestinians, including children and the elderly and 51 Israelis are still missing since 7 October 2023, UN experts* said today, calling on authorities in both Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory to disclose the fate and whereabouts of all victims of enforced disappearance. 'Enforced disappearances can never be justified, even during a state of war, instability or public emergency,' the experts said. Twenty months of assault by the Israeli army have resulted, among others, in widespread patterns of enforced disappearances among Palestinians in Gaza and other parts of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including health and care workers, journalists, and other professionals, as well as women and children, the experts said. 'This has been facilitated through military orders and legislation allowing for indefinite detention without trial of so-called 'unlawful combatants' and others, in breach of international human rights and humanitarian law,' they said. The experts said attacks perpetrated by Palestinian armed groups on 7 October 2023 led to many Israeli civilians being killed and 251 victims taken hostage. The whereabouts of at least 51 hostages remain unknown. These acts are tantamount to enforced disappearances, they said. 'The urgent need is for an end to hostilities, unconditional freeing of all hostages, and certainty on the fate and whereabouts of all those forcibly disappeared, no matter the circumstances, whether in detention or deceased,' the experts said. Through its humanitarian procedure, the Working Group continues to register cases and see patterns of disappeared persons and victims whose fate and whereabouts are unknown, in particular with persons last seen while trying to cross from the north of Gaza to the south or vice-versa at checkpoints, from hospitals and persons arrested by officers of the Israeli Defence Forces during ground operations. 'These detentions are not properly reported to families, registration of deprivation of liberty cannot be verified, and those in custody are unable to communicate with their families or legal representatives or to seek legal review of the grounds of their detention,' they said. 'The pain and suffering for relatives of the disappeared can constitute a form of psychological torture and other inhumane treatment.' 'In cases of death in custody, authorities must promptly, impartially, independently and thoroughly investigate to establish the cause and manner of their deaths and return the bodies of victims to their families,' the experts said. Palestinian armed groups and Israeli Defence Forces must immediately, investigate and prevent enforced disappearances and acts tantamount, the experts said, calling for prompt, independent, impartial and thorough investigation, prosecution and sanction of those responsible. 'It is concerning that the figures for Palestinians who have been forcibly disappeared and missing are hugely underreported,' the experts said. They noted that relatives of victims are often reluctant to report cases or exchange information with Israeli Government officials, for fear of reprisals or lack of trust. 'We call for the immediate and unconditional release of the remaining hostages held in Gaza as well as the immediate disclosure of the fate, whereabouts, legal status and state of health of all Palestinians who have been forcibly disappeared,' the experts said. They called for their immediate release, unless they are charged with an internationally recognisable criminal offence and prosecuted in proceedings that comply with international standards. They urged families and civil society to report enforced disappearances and acts tantamount to relevant Special Procedures, including the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Working Group's primary task is to assist families in determining the fate and whereabouts of their relatives who have reportedly disappeared. The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances raised these concerns in a communication to the Government of Israel, which is yet to provide a response. *The experts: Gabriella Citroni (Chair-Rapporteur), Grażyna Baranowska (Vice-Chair), Aua Baldé, Ana Lorena Delgadillo Pérez, and Mohammed Al-Obaidi, Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967; Morris Tidball-Binz, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Alice Jill Edwards,.
Scoop
12-07-2025
- Scoop
UN Experts Urge Thailand To Drop Charges Against Pimsiri Petchnamrob And Other Pro-democracy Rights Defenders
GENEVA (11 July 2025) – UN experts* today expressed grave concern over ongoing judicial proceedings against Thai woman human rights defender Pimsiri Petchnamrob, calling on the Government to drop charges against her and other human rights defenders who participated in pro-democracy protests. ' Lèse-majesté laws, with their vague formulation and severe penalties, have no place in a democracy. Their widespread and punitive use to silence dissent, suppress public debate, and intimidate human rights defenders, political opponents, civil society activists, journalists, and ordinary citizens violates Thailand's international human rights obligations,' the experts said. 'We urge authorities to drop the charges against Petchnamrob and all others facing criminal prosecution on similar grounds immediately.' In November 2021, Pimsiri Petchnamrob wasindictedunder a total of ten charges, including under Section 112 (lèse-majesté), Section 116 (sedition), and Section 215 (participation in an illegal assembly) of the Criminal Code, for delivering a speech during a peaceful pro-democracy protest in November 2020. Petchnamrob is among at least five human rights defenders who were indicted for delivering speeches at the same protest. Her trial, which began in June 2025, is ongoing before the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road, with two additional hearings scheduled in August, followed by the delivery of a judgment. The experts cited findings from a recent country visit report by the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls. The report noted that at least 470 women human rights defenders have been arrested and prosecuted under Sections 112 and 116 since 2020. 'These punitive charges often result in financial hardship, deteriorating health and significant challenges around family care,' they said. 'We reiterate our call to the Government of Thailand to revise and repeal lèse-majesté laws, which have a broad chilling effect on the exercise of rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, leading to a climate of fear and self-censorship,' the experts said. 'Public figures, including the highest political authorities, are legitimately subject to criticism.' 'Thailand must stop criminalising individuals who carry out the critical work of defending civic space and human rights,' they said. The experts have been in contact with the Government of Thailand on these matters, including to express concerns about prosecutions under Section 112 of the Criminal Code. Note: *The experts: Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair), Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krstić, and Haina Lu, Working Group on discrimination against women and girls; Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Gina Romero, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent fromany government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR.
Scoop
30-06-2025
- Scoop
Council Adopts Annual Plan Budget
Marlborough District Councillors adopted the Council's annual plan budget for 2025/26 today, with an average rates increase of 8.61%. Mayor Nadine Taylor thanked Council staff for their work to bring rates down from the Long Term Plan forecast of 10.62%. 'Council's core spending remains strongly focussed on providing infrastructure, including roading, flood protection, waste management, water supply and community facilities. 'The increase is made up of a number of elements outside Council's control - depreciation at 3.23% and local government inflationary adjustments at 3.3%*, which add up to 6.53%. We are also still paying for the Covid Rates Relief fund applied during the pandemic to help ratepayers, the cost of which is spread over three years, with an impact of 1.5% per year.' 'Roading and footpaths are the biggest item of Council capital expenditure with $64M allocated this year for improvements and renewals. Included in this figure is $29M to repair and rebuild the storm damaged Sounds roading network, on which work continues at pace. It's especially pleasing that the Sounds roading repairs are ahead of schedule and under budget.' 'Thirty one million dollars is allocated to three waters infrastructure, with $16M going towards flood protection and community facilites.' She said the annual plan included $6.5M for building flood protection works in Spring Creek and at Conders Bend, Renwick, provided through the Government's Kānoa Regional Infrastructure Fund. 'As we experienced again in the past few days, our stop bank network is critical to the safety of the communities who live beside the Wairau River. I want to assure everyone that the budget is in place for the necessary stop bank rebuilds and repairs.' 'Council's capital expenditure budget for this year has increased to $119M, including the Sounds roads recovery. As a result, projected debt is $154M at the end of June 2026, as opposed to $190M forecast in Council's Long Term Plan (LTP) last year.' 'I'd like to thank the 89 people and organisations who made the effort to give us their feedback via the new streamlined engagement process. Your ideas covered many topics including community facilities, parks and open spaces, regional development, animal control and roads.' 'Councillors referred some ideas to the Long Term Plan Working Group for further consideration and confirmed a $40k annual museum operating grant to the Marlborough Historical Society.' A record of the councillors' public feedback discussion can be found in the Economic, Finance and Community Committee minutes of 18 March 2025 on Council's website. Public consultation also recently took place on charges for the Bluegums landfill and the consequential impact on charges at transfer stations. An average increase of 17.82% will be applied to fees at the Blenheim landfill and transfer station, meaning the average trailer load of waste will cost an extra $5.92 to dispose of. Councillors received the draft annual plan budget at its 8 May 2025 meeting and supported three small levels of service requests for the 2025-26 financial year, including replacing the air conditioning system at the Marlborough Events Centre. Councillors declined requests to fund a part time Welcoming Communities Coordinator role and a full time librarian position to cover the loss of 1.5 FTE fixed term positions. The Marlborough Library in Blenheim will therefore reduce its opening hours by five a week, closing at 5pm rather than 6pm on week days. Weekend opening hours will remain the same. Note: The BERL Local Government Cost Index (LGCI) is a measure of the change in costs for goods and services purchased by local government in New Zealand, similar to the Consumer Price Index. BERL (Business and Economic Research Limited) provides this index to councils, which is used to forecast price and cost movements, including for major expenditure items like bitumen and water pipes.
