Hilary Benn, Labor MP for Leeds Central, said the UK had a “duty” to press for the release of Salma al-Shehab, a Saudi national living in Britain who was arrested after returning to visit her family last year . Sehab, who has two young children, was initially sentenced to three years in prison for “causing public disorder” and “destabilizing politics and national security” after appearing to support activists and dissidents on Twitter. But an appeals court last week handed down a new sentence – 34 years in prison followed by a 34-year travel ban – after a prosecutor asked the court to consider other alleged crimes. She has described suffering abuse and harassment behind bars, telling a Saudi court that she was interrogated after being given drugs that left her exhausted. Amnesty International called for her “immediate and unconditional release”. In a letter to Truss, Benn says the UK must step in and calls on her to “pass the Saudi authorities” on Shehab “so that she can be freed to return to her family and her studies”. He says the case is “totally at odds with Saudi Arabia’s claim to improve human rights,” writing: “It seems all she has done is use her Twitter account to advocate for women’s rights and greater freedom and to demand the release of imprisoned activists in Saudi Arabia.” Ben adds: “Saudi Arabia says, ‘we’re reforming the country.’ You can’t on the one hand say “we’re opening up and freeing the country” and on the other hand send a woman to jail for expressing her views on Twitter. “I believe we have a duty as citizens and countries to speak out where human rights are violated and denied in this way. The fact that she was a student at one of our universities adds to that obligation.” He calls the case “shocking and outrageous.” The University of Leeds said: “We are deeply concerned to learn of the recent development in Salma’s case and are seeking advice on whether there is anything we can do to support her. Our thoughts remain with Salma, her family and her friends in our close-knit community of postgraduate researchers.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Shehab was in his final year of doctoral studies at the School of Medicine, focusing on improving dental treatment for disabled patients. Saudi Arabia has sought to improve its global reputation in recent years through tourism campaigns and the hosting of major sporting events, including golf championships and boxing matches. This weekend, it took center stage when it hosted a heavyweight title fight between Britain’s Anthony Joshua and Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday night. Fighters are said to have been paid four times more to fight at the Jeddah Superdrome than they would have received at Wembley. Critics say the events are part of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to “wash its reputation” and distract attention from its poor human rights record, a strategy called “sport washing”. In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today program on Saturday, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, who represents Joshua, appeared to dismiss the criticism. He said there were “a lot of people who have opinions who don’t actually go and see things with their own eyes” and that Jeddah today was “totally unrecognizable” to how it was three years ago. “People talk about sportwashing. If people want to use sport, they want to use boxing to make change, then I’m all for it,” he said. Bethany Al-Haidari, Saudi affairs manager at the Freedom Initiative, a US-based human rights group, said Shehab’s case was “shocking” but “one of hundreds”. “She is the only one who happens to have the opportunity for the world to see. But this is a bigger problem,” he said. “There has been a global campaign by the Saudi government to say that things are changing and the country is reforming, but that is not true. In fact, it’s the opposite of what we’ve seen on the ground.” He said cases of abuse were not limited to Saudi nationals, adding that those traveling there for sporting and other events could be at risk. “Just last year, there was a case where a US citizen was removed from a flight and detained. You never know what might happen, especially if you’ve ever spoken out about human rights or if you belong to a minority. It is not a predictable regime.” The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not respond to requests for comment.
