wr2014_web_0

WORLD REPORT 2014Natour had appeared in videos of protests in Amman that criticized SaudiArabia’s armed intervention in Bahrain. Authorities held him incommunicadoand without charge for three months until releasing him on April 7. The governmentalHuman Rights Commission told Human Rights Watch in July that over2,500 terrorism suspects still languish in prisons without charge or trial for upto 10 years.According to media reports, Saudi Arabia executed at least 64 persons betweenJanuary and November 2013, mostly for murder, drug offenses, and armed robbery.The vast majority of executions were carried out via public beheading. OnMay 21, authorities in Jizan governorate executed five Yemenis for armed robberyand murder by “crucifixion”— a punishment of beheading followed by displayof the decapitated body in public. At time of writing, prosecutors in theSpecialized Criminal Court were pursuing a “crucifixion” sentence againstprominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr.In April, authorities in the southern city of Abha executed seven Saudi men byfiring squad for armed robberies in 2005; at least two were under 18 at the timeof the alleged robberies. Saudi Arabia is one of just four countries worldwidethat continues to execute child offenders.Women’s and Girls’ RightsUnder the guardianship system, girls and women are forbidden from traveling,conducting official business, or undergoing certain medical procedures withoutpermission from their male guardians. Likewise, under un-codified rules on personalstatus, women are not allowed to marry without the permission of theirguardian; unlike men, they do not have unilateral right to divorce and oftenface discrimination in relation to custody of children.On October 26, at least 50 Saudi women got behind the wheel throughout thekingdom in defiance of the ban on women driving. Police officials said thatofficers had pulled over at least 18 women driving in various areas of thecountry, though it is unclear whether any faced fines or other penalties. OnOctober 27, police arrested Tariq al-Mubarak, a secondary school teacher andcolumnist for the London-based Arabic newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, who hadexpressed support for an end to the driving ban. Authorities releasedal-Mubarak on November 3.602