Saudi cartoonist sentenced to 23 years in prison, activists say

A Saudi cartoonist who once drew for a Qatari newspaper, has been sentenced to 23 years in prison, an activist group says.

The sentence for Mohammed al-Ghamdi marks the latest in a widening crackdown on any perceived dissent in Saudi Arabia since the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, now seen as the kingdom's day-to-day ruler in place of his 88-year-old father King Salman.

Saudi officials did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday from The Associated Press.

Al-Ghamdi drew under the pen name Al-Hazza, with some of his cartoons poking fun at challenges during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, as well as touching occasionally on the politics of the Middle East.

However, political cartoons, like the content of Arabic-language newspapers in some Gulf states, must carefully thread the needle when discussing the region's rulers.

Al-Ghamdi had been working for the Qatari newspaper Lusail, while a yearslong diplomatic boycott of Qatar by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain began in 2017.

He was given a six year sentence from Saudi Arabia's Specialised Criminal Court over charges denied by the cartoonist including that his work allegedly insulted the kingdom.

But in recent months, the case was reopened and al-Ghamdi received an unappealable 23-year sentence, according to SANAD, a United Kingdom-based human rights organisation focused on Saudi Arabia.

"This situation underscores the urgent need for international action to protect artistic freedom and human rights in Saudi Arabia," SANAD said. "Al-Ghamdi’s case exemplifies the troubling climate in Saudi Arabia, where no one is truly safe; he became a target simply for being an artist, nothing else."

Bin Salman has moved toward liberalising some aspects of life in the conservative kingdom. He also has pursued large-scale building projects and other diplomatic deals to raise his profile globally.

Meanwhile, the prince has solidified his power in part through imprisoning the country’s elite and others who speak out. A doctoral student, Salma al-Shehab, and others face decadeslong prison sentences over their comments online.