Mohammad Labbad

Extra Bio Info:

Mohammad Labbad is imprisoned and sentenced to death for his religious freedom advocacy. 

In September 2017, Saudi authorities detained Labbad, brother of Jalal Labbad, for participating in demonstrations against the state's treatment of Shi'a citizens and allegedly attending funerals of protestors killed by police in al-Qatif in 2011 and 2012. Authorities charged him with belonging to an armed terrorist organization under the Royal Decree No. A/44, the 2014 Counter-terrorism and Financing of Terrorism Act, and the Weapons and Ammunition Law issued in Royal Decree No. M/45, among others. 

In October 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court sentenced Labbad to death. 

During detention, authorities subjected Labbad to solitary confinement for more than 5 months. Authorities also subjected him to physical and psychological torture, including flogging with metal wires, waterboarding, sleep deprivation, threats of rape, and threats of violence against his family. Judicial authorities used confessions made under duress to convict him.