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RAMALLAH, (MANEND NEWS): The Islamic Resistance Movement,
Hamas, expressed its shock at the rulings issued by the Saudi judiciary
against a large number of “Palestinian and Jordanian” brothers
residing in the Kingdom.
The movement said in a press statement that these brothers did not
commit what required these harsh and unjustified sentences, as well
as a trial. All they did was support their cause and the people to which
they belong, without any offense to the Kingdom and its people.
The movement added: While we welcome the verdicts of acquittal
issued against some of the brothers, we deplore the harsh and
undeserved sentences against the majority of them, and we call on the
Saudi leadership to quickly release them and end their suffering and
the suffering of their families that have passed for more than two
years.
It is worth mentioning here that a Saudi court issued various
sentences against 69 Palestinian and Jordanian detainees, with some
handed jail terms of up to 22 years, over alleged support for the
Palestinian Hamas movement.
Dozens of Palestinians have been detained and facing trial before a
terrorism court since February 2019, including businesspeople,
academics and students.
Sources in the besieged Gaza Strip have previously told “Middle East
Eye” that they believed the crackdown was linked to warming ties
between Israel and Riyadh.
An official Hamas source told “MEE” last year that the majority of the
detainees were Hamas members who had resided in the Gulf country
for decades, accusing Saudi Arabia of “targeting everyone who is
linked with resistance” against the Israeli occupation.
On Sunday, the Committee of Jordanian Detainees in Saudi Arabia, a
Jordanian rights group, said sentences have been issued against 69
Jordanians and Palestinians, with some of them sentenced to 22 years
in prison while others were acquitted.
The sentences have not yet been made public. Detainees can appeal
against the sentences after 40 days, according to the sister of
Jordanian detainee Tarek Abbas.
The Saudi court sentenced the Hamas representative in Saudi Arabia,
Mohammed al-Khoudary, to 15 years in prison, while his son, Hani,
was sentenced to three years, according to Turkish news agency
“Anadolu”.
The Turkish news agency quoted Abd al-Majid, Khoudary’s brother, as
saying that the sentence against him includes “clemency for half the
term (seven-and-a-half years)”.
The 82-year-old Khoudary is a veteran Hamas leader who was
responsible for managing the relationship with Saudi Arabia for two
decades.
Khoudary had long had a relationship with the Saudi royal family and
security agencies and was the conduit for their indirect talks with
Hamas before being detained in April 2019.
Amnesty International has previously said that the Khoudarys had not
been not allowed access to a lawyer while in detention. Saudi
authorities have yet to comment on Sunday’s verdicts.
