Supporters of a blogger jailed in Saudi Arabia are concerned he will once again be subject to lashings and are calling for his release.
Raif Badawi, whose wife lives in Sherbrooke, Que., was arrested in 2012 and sentenced in 2014.
In a statement, the Raif Badawi Foundation said it had received word from a “private source” that the Saudi government will resume the lashing punishment.
“Our understanding of the information is that another series of lashes … will take place, this time inside the prison,” the statement said.
Ordeal never stops. The lashes punishment will restart inside the Saoudi prison’s walls.
Ordeal never stops : the lashes punishment will restart inside the Saudi prison’ s walls – The Raif…
As of today, we received from a private source the sad news concerning the fact that the Saudi government will resume the lashing punishment against M. Raif Badawi.
Mireille Elchacar, a spokesperson for Amnesty International in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, where Badawi’s wife lives, said the organization is trying to independently confirm the claim.
In 2014, Badawi was found guilty of insulting Islamic values, “promoting liberal thought” and “going beyond the realm of obedience” by suggesting on his website that the Saudi kingdom should become more democratic.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes. He also faces a hefty fine.
He received the first 50 in January 2015 but is not believed to have had any since.
Badawi is not a Canadian citizen, but his wife, Ensaf Haidar, and their three children were granted political asylum in 2013.
