Saudi Arabia: UN Experts Call For Immediate Release Of Child Offenders

GENEVA (30 April 2025) – A group of human rights experts today expressed dismay at the continuing prosecution and sentencing of child offenders in Saudi Arabia, where five people who reportedly committed crimes when they were under the age of 18 have each been charged for protesting against the Government’s treatment of the Shia Muslim minority and for attending funerals of those killed by State authorities.

“Enforcing a death sentence in violation of a State’s obligations under international law amounts to arbitrary execution and is therefore unlawful,” the experts said.

The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) had previously stated in its opinion concerning Abdullah al-Derazi, Jalal al-Labbad, Yusuf Muhammad Mahdi al-Manasif, Jawad Abdullah Qureiris and Hassan Zaki al-Faraj that their deprivation of liberty was arbitrary as it had no proper legal basis.

The five individuals have been sentenced to death and face imminent execution.

“We call for the immediate release of the five individuals, to prevent any irreparable harm to their lives or personal integrity,” the experts said.

They had previously called for all necessary interim measures to be taken to halt the executions.

“Capital punishment and life imprisonment without possibility of release for offences committed by persons under the age of 18 are explicitly and strictly prohibited by the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” they said.

The Working Group found that the deprivation of liberty of these five individuals was arbitrary, as it resulted from their exercise of the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, and to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

“We had previously communicated to the government of Saudi Arabia our concerns about the fairness of the trial, as it was tainted by ill-treatment and torture, amounting to a violation of fair trial rights,” the experts said, adding that alleged forced confessions taint the entire trial process, regardless of whether other evidence was available to support the verdict.

The experts noted that the deprivation of liberty of the five individuals was likely due to their religious affiliation, as they belonged to the Shia minority.

“We are alarmed by the pattern of persecution and long history of discrimination against the Shia religious minority in Saudi Arabia,” they said.

“The situation is particularly worrying given the sharp increase in the number of executions carried out in Saudi Arabia, with some 65 executions carried out since the beginning of 2025,” the experts said.

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