Sulaiman al-Dowaish
Additional Name(s): Sulaiman Al Dowaish, سليمان الدويش
Gender: Male
Perpetrator: Saudi Arabia
Ethnic Group: Arab
Religion or Belief: Muslim – Sunni
Reports of Torture: Yes
Reports of Medical Neglect: No
Date of Detainment: April/22/2016
Current Status: Not Released
Religious Leader: Yes
Most Recent Type of Abuse: Disappeared
Reason for Persecution: Religious Expression
Nature of Charges: Unknown
Sulaiman al-Dowaish
Extra Bio Info:
Sulaiman al-Dowaish was forcibly disappeared for his religious expression.
In April 2016, al-Dowaish, a religious scholar, was forcibly disappeared after posting tweets summarizing a religious lecture that authorities perceived to be critical of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Two months after his arrest, al-Dowaish’s name appeared on the Ministry of Interior’s online database of detainees, confirming his presence in state custody. The last known sighting of al-Dowaish was in July 2018.
Authorities tortured al-Dowaish during his detention and arrested his three sons for inquiring about his disappearance.
Publicly Available Information:
- Photo used with permission from MENA Rights Group
- USCIRF Annual Report 2024: Saudi Arabia
- USCIRF Annual Report 2023: Saudi Arabia
- USCIRF Commissioner Stephen Schneck, Tweet, March 24, 2023
- USCIRF Country Update: Religious Freedom Conditions in Saudi Arabia December 2022
- USCIRF Tweet August 30, 2022
- 2021 Report on International Religious Freedom: Saudi Arabia U.S. Department of State
- “Saudi religious scholar Sulaiman Al Dowaish forcibly disappeared since April 2016” MENA Rights Group
- “Son of missing preacher Sulaiman al-Dowaish re-arrested” ALQST