Salma al-Shehab: UK academics urge government to act over Leeds student jailed in Saudi Arabia

‘Salma should be looking forward to the new academic year instead of languishing behind bars,’ open letter says

Salma al-Shehab (Democracy Now)

Hundreds of UK academics have urged the government to take “urgent action” to free a Leeds University student and women’s rights activist from prison in Saudi Arabia.

Salma al-Shehab was sentenced to 34 years behind bars last month for having a Twitter account and sharing posts written by dissidents and activists.

This was the longest known sentence that Saudi authorities had given to a women’s rights activist, according to advocacy groups at the time.

A total of 400 academics from UK universities have now signed an open letter calling on Liz Truss and her foreign secretary, James Cleverly, to act to set the PhD student free.

“Salma should be looking forward, like us, to the new academic year, instead of languishing behind bars for the ‘crime’ of tweeting her legitimate opinions,” it read.

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“She must be freed, reunited with her family, and allowed to finish her PhD in the UK.”

Ms al-Shehab, a 34-year-old mother of two children, was arrested in Saudi Arabia while on a visit home for the holidays in January last year.

She was initially sentenced to six years in prison, but this was increased to 34 years during an appeal last month.

The Leeds student has also been handed a travel ban that would prevent her from leaving Saudi Arabia for a further 34 years after she leaves prison.

The open letter from UK academics – sent on Wednesday – said the charges against Ms al-Shehab relate “solely to her peaceful activity on Twitter”.

This included tweets “in favour of women’s rights and basic freedoms” in Saudi Arabia, as well as in support of fellow Saudi women’s rights activists such as Loujain al-Hathloul, who has also spent time behind bars in the country.

Salma al-Shehab was jailed for 34 years in Saudi Arabia last month (AP)

The letter said Ms al-Shehab’s sentence “shows that the Saudi leadership should continue to be held at arm’s length until the authorities demonstrate genuine commitment to human rights”.

Its signatories urged the prime minister and foreign secretary to make a public statement condemning the imprisonment and sentencing of the student.

They also asked Ms Truss and Mr Cleverly to make “immediate representations” to their Saudi counterparts in a bid to secure Ms al-Shehab’s release and quash her conviction.

The letter – signed by dozens of staff from the University of Leeds – also called for the 34-year-old to get immediate British consular access.

The Leeds MP also urged Ms Truss to intervene in Ms al-Shehab’s case while still foreign secretary last month.

A government spokesperson said: “UK ministers and senior officials have raised concerns about the case with the Saudi authorities and will continue to do so.”