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Saudi Arabian court sentences man to death for sedition

Ali Al Nimr was convicted of sedition, breaking allegiance, rioting, bearing arms, using petrol bombs and other offences.

A Saudi Arabian court has sentenced to death a man convicted of sedition, rioting, protesting and robbery in the district of Qatif.

The sentence, issued on Tuesday and reported by state media early on Wednesday, is the second time in a week the death penalty has been imposed on a man involved in unrest in Qatif, located in the oil-producing Eastern Province.

The judge’s decision to apply the penalty can still be challenged in an appeal court, the supreme court and then by petitioning the king.

Ali Al Nimr was convicted of sedition, breaking allegiance to the king, rioting, bearing arms, using petrol bombs against security patrols, robbing a pharmacy and stealing surveillance cameras.

Nimr was also convicted of chanting anti-state slogans in illegal protests and inciting others to demonstrate, state media reported.

The conviction of Nimr, follows that of 26-year-old Rida Al Rubh.

The two are part of a group of around a dozen defendants now on trial for their part in protests and violent unrest in Qatif, particularly in the village of Awamiya, where police officers and facilities have been attacked.