Saudi hands jail terms to 38 on terror related charges

Saudi Arabia’s Specialist Criminal Court in Riyadh yesterday sentenced 38 defendants to prison terms ranging from six months to 25 years on charges of financing terrorism and declaring other Muslims as non-believers, state-run Al-Ekhbariya channel reported.

The channel said one of the convicts set up a terrorist organisation while in prison and recruited prisoners, without giving further details.

According to the channel, the defendants were accused of “financing and committing acts of terrorism with the aim of disturbing internal security, and preparing, storing and sending material that would prejudice public order”.

READ: Saudi Arabia detains 1,028 foreign prisoners on terrorism charges

It quoted a source as saying that the court has also ordered to non-Saudi defendants to be deported after the end of their trial, without specifying their number.

The sentences can be appealed.

The state-run channel did not provide information about the defendants, their nationalities or the date of their arrest. It also did not say if they included prominent preachers or human rights activists.