Saudi Arabia: Six years of jail time for helping a Saudi woman convert

A Lebanese man has been condemned to six years of imprisonment and 300 lashes in Saudi Arabia for having encouraged a Saudi woman to convert to Christianity and leave the country, reported local press on May 12, 2013. A Saudi man was also condemned to two years in jail and 200 lashes for having aided the young woman to flee Saudi Arabia. The verdict was pronounced by the court of Khobar in eastern Saudi Arabia, where the three persons involved were employed by an insurance company.

According to local press, the woman, whose identity has not been released, has taken refuge in Sweden where she is protected by NGOs. The affair caused a furore in Saudi Arabia last July. The Saudi news site Sabak reported on it at the time, quoting the 28-yearold woman’s parents as saying she had fled to Bahreïn and then Lebanon where she took shelter in a church.

Saudi women are not permitted to travel abroad unless they are accompanied by a male relative or have the express permission of their guardian. Moslems who convert to another religion are punishable by death, and the practice of other religions is forbidden throughout Saudi Arabian territory. (Source: kipa-apic.ch – DICI no. 276, 07/06/13)

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