human rights defender
Mohammed Al-Hazzaa
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER
Urgent support needed
Al-Hazzaa suffers from diabetes, neurological issues and a back problem.
HRD's Gender
Man
Type of HRD
- Journalist/Blogger
HRD's thematic area of engagement
- Other
Current Status
In prison (sentenced)
HRD's bio and work
Mohammed Al-Hazzaa is a cartoonist who goes by the name Al-Hazzaa. He has contributed some cartoons for the Qatari newspaper “Lusail” that depicted humorous mockery of various social and economic situations in Saudi Arabia. He also published his cartoons on his Instagram account and was featured in one of the Saudi-sponsored TV programs to showcase his work.
Detained since
Feb 13, 2018
Charge(s)
- Espionage
- Terrorism
Sentence
23 YEARS
Latitude: 21.85332
Longitude: 39.13319
Geolocation of detention
Country or area of detention
Region of detention
- Asia: Western Asia
Location of detention - City/Town
Jeddah
Location of detention - Facility
Dhahban prison
Allegations / reports of ill-treatment
Al-Hazzaa was placed under surveillance by an undercover informant before his arrest in February 2018 in his hometown of Al-Baha in Saudi Arabia. Security forces, led by the same informant, raided his home and confiscated his belonging and ransacked his studio without legal warrant. Al-Hazzaa has been subjected to various serious violations during his detention to obtain coerced confessions. He was initially detained without any communication with his family for months and endured degrading treatment. His family, including his pregnant wife and five children, has also endured psychological trauma because of the violent security raid on his home. One of his children suffered a severe nervous breakdown after the raid. Al-Hazzaa has also suffered from deteriorating health due to medical neglect in prison in addressing his pre-existing conditions. The medical neglect was so serious that he needed later to be hospitalised for days, and he continues to suffer from medical neglect.
Recent case update / evolution
Al-Hazzaa remained imprisoned until the Specialised Criminal Court issued his first sentence of six years in prison in July 2021. The case against him was reopened in December 2023, and sometime in 2024 he was sentenced to 23 years in prison without appeal. He was charged with sympathising with Qatar as an enemy state and in contradiction to the Saudi state’s policy by drawing 100 cartoons, and stating on the X social media platform that Qatar does not deserve the blockade. In addition, he was charged with communication with hostile entities to Saudi Arabia, including “Lusail” newspaper, following prominent Arab figures and dissidents’ accounts on X, supporting “terrorist ideas” in his posts on X, and offending the Saudi government by his cartoons.
Attachments
Documented by
- Country(ies) of nationality
- HRD's Gender
- Man
- Type of HRD
- Journalist/Blogger
- HRD's thematic area of engagement
- Other
- HRD's Picture
- HRD's bio and work
Mohammed Al-Hazzaa is a cartoonist who goes by the name Al-Hazzaa. He has contributed some cartoons for the Qatari newspaper “Lusail” that depicted humorous mockery of various social and economic situations in Saudi Arabia. He also published his cartoons on his Instagram account and was featured in one of the Saudi-sponsored TV programs to showcase his work.
- Country or area of detention
- Region of detention
- Asia: Western Asia
- Location of detention - City/Town
- Jeddah
- Location of detention - Facility
- Dhahban prison
- Geolocation of detention
Latitude: 21.85332
Longitude: 39.13319
- Geolocation of detention
- Detained since
- Feb 13, 2018
- Current Status
- In prison (sentenced)
- Charge(s)
- Espionage
- Terrorism
- Sentence
23 YEARS
- Recent case update / evolution
Al-Hazzaa remained imprisoned until the Specialised Criminal Court issued his first sentence of six years in prison in July 2021. The case against him was reopened in December 2023, and sometime in 2024 he was sentenced to 23 years in prison without appeal. He was charged with sympathising with Qatar as an enemy state and in contradiction to the Saudi state’s policy by drawing 100 cartoons, and stating on the X social media platform that Qatar does not deserve the blockade. In addition, he was charged with communication with hostile entities to Saudi Arabia, including “Lusail” newspaper, following prominent Arab figures and dissidents’ accounts on X, supporting “terrorist ideas” in his posts on X, and offending the Saudi government by his cartoons.
- Allegations / reports of ill-treatment
Al-Hazzaa was placed under surveillance by an undercover informant before his arrest in February 2018 in his hometown of Al-Baha in Saudi Arabia. Security forces, led by the same informant, raided his home and confiscated his belonging and ransacked his studio without legal warrant. Al-Hazzaa has been subjected to various serious violations during his detention to obtain coerced confessions. He was initially detained without any communication with his family for months and endured degrading treatment. His family, including his pregnant wife and five children, has also endured psychological trauma because of the violent security raid on his home. One of his children suffered a severe nervous breakdown after the raid. Al-Hazzaa has also suffered from deteriorating health due to medical neglect in prison in addressing his pre-existing conditions. The medical neglect was so serious that he needed later to be hospitalised for days, and he continues to suffer from medical neglect.
- Urgent support needed
Al-Hazzaa suffers from diabetes, neurological issues and a back problem.
- Documented by
- Consent status
- Consent to register, store and publish the information
sorted by
Date added
3 relationships, 2 entities