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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 19 OctOber 2022

Family: Saudis sentence U.S. citizen to 16 years over tweets

The Associated Press from Biden’s earlier vow to
DUBAI, United Arab Emir- make the kingdom a “pa-
ates (AP) — An American riah” over the 2018 killing of
citizen has been arrested in Saudi journalist and Wash-
Saudi Arabia, tortured and ington Post columnist Ja-
sentenced to 16 years in mal Khashoggi.
prison over tweets he sent Ibrahim said his father was
while in the United States, sentenced to 16 years in
his son said Tuesday. prison on Oct. 3 on charges
Saad Ibrahim Almadi, a of supporting terrorism. The
72-year-old retired project father was also charged
manager living in Florida, with failing to report terror-
was arrested last Novem- ism, over tweets that Ibra-
ber while visiting family in him had posted.
the kingdom and was sen- His father was also slapped
tenced earlier this month, with a 16-year travel ban.
his son Ibrahim told The As- If the sentence is carried
sociated Press, confirming out, the 72-year-old would
details that were first report- be 87 upon his release
ed by the Washington Post. and barred from returning
Almadi is a citizen of both home to the U.S. unless he
Saudi Arabia and the U.S. reaches the age of 104.
There was no immediate Ibrahim said Saudi authori-
comment from Saudi or U.S. In this photo provided by Ibrahim Almadi, Saad Ibrahim Almadi sits in a restaurant in an unidentified ties warned his family to
place, in the United States, on August 2021.
officials. Associated Press stay quiet about the case
It appeared to be the latest and to not involve the U.S.
in a series of recent cases in dom but has adopted a “rumors” and retweeting in the U.S., where freedom government.
which Saudis received long hard line toward any criti- dissidents, a case that drew of speech is a constitutional He said his father was tor-
jail sentences for social me- cism. international outrage. right. tured after the family con-
dia posts critical of the gov- A Saudi court recently Ibrahim says his father was President Joe Biden trav- tacted the State Depart-
ernment. sentenced a woman to detained over 14 “mild eled to the oil-rich king- ment in March.
Saudi authorities have tight- 45 years in prison for alleg- tweets” sent over the past dom in July for a meeting Ibrahim also accused the
ened their crackdown on edly damaging the country seven years, mostly criticiz- with Prince Mohammed, State Department of ne-
dissent following the rise of through her social media ing government policies in which he said he con- glecting his father’s case
Crown Prince Mohammed activity. A Saudi doctoral and alleged corruption. He fronted him about human by not declaring him a
bin Salman, who is seeking student at Leeds University says his father was not an rights. Their meeting and a “wrongfully detained”
to open up and transform in England was sentenced activist but a private citizen widely criticized fist-bump American, which would el-
the ultraconservative king- to 34 years for spreading expressing his opinion while marked a sharp turnaround evate his file.q

China claims right to protect consulate; UK decries assault

By SYLVIA HUI ful protest outside the Chi- porters Tuesday that the day. ment to take tougher ac-
Associated Press nese Consulate on Sunday protester had “illegally en- “Today we have made our tion.
LONDON (AP) — China’s turned into a “hostile” situa- tered” the consulate and view clear to the Chinese “We cannot allow the Chi-
Foreign Ministry said Tues- tion when unidentified men “jeopardized the security authorities: the right to nese Communist Party to
day its diplomatic missions came out of the building, of the Chinese diplomatic peaceful protest in the U.K. import their beating of pro-
abroad have the right to dragged one protester into premises.” must be respected,” said testers and their silencing of
“take necessary measures” the consulate grounds and “The diplomatic missions of Foreign Office minister Zac free speech ... to British soil,”
to maintain security after assaulted him. Police said all countries have the right Goldsmith. said Alicia Kearns, chair of
British police opened an officers had to intervene to take necessary measures Several U.K. lawmakers Parliament’s foreign affairs
investigation into the as- and remove the man. to maintain the peace and pressed the British govern- committee.q
sault of a Hong Kong pro- The man, who is in his 30s, dignity of the premises,”
tester who alleged he was told reporters that he was Wang said in Beijing. “What
dragged into the Chinese beaten up when protesters I want to stress is that the
Consulate in Manchester tried to stop the masked peace and dignity of Chi-
and beaten up during a men from tearing down nese embassies and con-
demonstration. their anti-government sulates abroad must not be
Britain’s foreign secretary placards outside the gates violated.”
summoned China’s sec- of the consulate. The pro- He added that the British
ond-most senior diplomat testers had gathered at the government should step up
in the U.K. on Tuesday to consulate as the Chinese protection for Chinese dip-
express the U.K.’s “deep Communist Party opened lomatic posts and person-
concern” about the assault its weeklong congress in nel in the U.K.
allegations and to demand Beijing on Sunday. Downing Street said the
an explanation for the ac- Chinese Foreign Ministry incident was “deeply con-
tions of the Chinese consul- spokesman Wang Wenbin cerning” and a Foreign
ate staff. rejected the accounts of Office official summoned The Chinese consulate in Manchester, England, Monday Oct.
Police in the English city of the protester and Man- Chinese charge d’affaires 17, 2022.
Manchester said a peace- chester police. He told re- Yang Xiaoguang on Tues- Associated Press