Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK (AOHR UK) is today launching a campaign to demand that the Saudi Arabian authorities immediately and without conditions release Palestinian national Dr. Muhammad al-Khudari.
On account of his rapidly deteriorating health condition, as due to the conditions of his detention, the AOHR UK demands Dr. al-Khudari’s immediate release on humanitarian grounds.
The elderly Muhammad al-Khudari suffers from multiple illnesses. When the Saudi authorities arbitrarily arrested al-Khudari and his son, Dr. Hani al-Khudari, on 4 April 2019, Muhammad had only recently undergone surgery, and was still being treated for prostate cancer.
Those illnesses have been hugely aggravated by the deplorable conditions of his detention, which include deliberate medical neglect – indeed, he has been denied the specialised medical attention he has badly required for over a year. Both Muhammad and Hani contracted Covid-19 whilst detained.
A year after their arrests, both Dr. Muhammed al-Khudari and Dr. Hani al-Khudari were brought before Saudi’s Specialised Criminal Court (SCC) in a mass trial involving 68 individuals and marked by numerous violations, including totally inadequate access to legal representation. Muhammed was given a 15 year prison sentence, reduced by half due to advanced age. Both father and son have been detained ever since their arrest.
Mohammed al-Khudari has been denied regular communication with his family, typically without any explanation or justification from the authorities.
Therefore, AOHR UK hereby calls on international human rights groups and activists, and all relevant global institutions, particularly the United Nations, to join the organisation in its demand for Dr. Muhammed al-Khudari’s immediate release on humanitarian grounds – his life is in grave danger, and can only be saved by concerted effort.
