Saudi Arabia Sentences 14 People to Death on Terrorism Charges

A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced 14 individuals to death for allegedly attacking police forces in the Shia-majority city of Qatif, located in the eastern part of the country. Reuters reported on Wednesday, June 1, citing lawyers for the 14 individuals, that the Saudi court deemed their actions as terrorist. According to the lawyer, the court also sentenced 9 others to prison, among which three received 15 years of imprisonment, while only one was acquitted of all charges. The lawyer further stated that the 24 defendants had been imprisoned for three years. The city of Qatif was the scene of multiple protests from 2011 to 2014, during which 20 Shia citizens of Saudi Arabia and several police officers were killed. The Shia minority in Saudi Arabia claims that the government systematically discriminates against them. However, the Saudi government denies such allegations. Five months ago, the Saudi court executed four Shia citizens along with 43 Sunni individuals on terrorism charges, one of whom was Nimr Baqr al-Nimr, a Shia cleric. The execution of this cleric particularly provoked strong protests from the Iranian government. Meanwhile, attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad led Riyadh to sever diplomatic ties with Tehran. The Reuters report on Wednesday does not specify whether the 14 sentenced individuals are also Shia. The report mentions that a Reuters journalist attempted to obtain more information from Saudi justice officials but was unsuccessful. Previously, human rights groups have repeatedly criticized the Saudi judicial system, emphasizing that many of these trials have been unjust. However, the Saudi government rejects these accusations, stating that its judiciary is independent and does not discriminate between Shia and Sunni individuals.