Abu Dhabi: A 65-year-old professor named Awad al-Qarni has been sentenced to death for using social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Telegram in the Islamic country of Saudi Arabia. The professor is accused of allegedly circulating anti-government news on social media.
The cleric was arrested on September 9, 2017, after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman took over the command of Saudi Arabia. According to the report, Awad al-Qarni has been wrongly portrayed as a "dangerous preacher" by state media. According to the report, before being arrested, the cleric had 2 million followers on Twitter. The cleric's arrest is being described as an action against dissidents by the authoritarian Saudi Arabian government. According to a report, the use of social media in Saudi Arabia has been criminalized by the regime of Mohammed bin Salman. This situation is in Saudi Arabia when the king's public investment fund has a huge investment in Facebook and WhatsApp.
Awad al-Qarni was sentenced to death after admitting that he used his Twitter account (@awadalqarni) to express his views on every occasion, the media report said. His son Nasir informed the newspaper about the allegations against him. Nasir fled Saudi Arabia last year and has been living in Britain since then.
Awad al-Qarni has also been accused of allegedly praising the radical Islamic organization Muslim Brotherhood in videos and WhatsApp chats. It has been told in the report that, 'Al-Qarni's creation of an account on Telegram and its apparent use is also included in the allegations.' Let us tell you that this is not the first time that the Saudi monarchy has punished someone for using social media. In August 2022, a woman named Salma al-Shahab was sentenced to 34 years in prison for having a Twitter account and sharing tweets critical of the Mohammed bin Salman regime.
At the same time, another woman, Noura bint Saeed al-Qaht, was sentenced to 45 years in prison for her social media activity. However, during the hearing in the Terrorism Court, nothing related to violence or criminal activity was recorded in his court papers. Zeid Basauni, who works for human rights group Reprev on the latest case, says the death sentence given to Awad al-Qarni is a way to silence critics.
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