Saudi Arabia will not tolerate those who defy the ban on protests, the Interior Ministry said in a statement Thursday, and called on citizens to respect the ongoing judicial procedures in the cases of terrorism suspects.
The statement that was published by the official state news agency said all the detainees, accused or indicted, enjoy their full rights under the supervision of the Human Rights Commission and the National Society for Human Rights.
“All the detainees and their families receive financial aid and support to deal with the demands of their living, education and healthcare,” the Interior Ministry said.
The families of detainees in Riyadh and Qassim have organized protests over the past few weeks demanding the release of their relatives.
The non-governmental Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA) says the kingdom is currently holding some 30,000 political prisoners. The government says the number of detainees is below 5,000, and that they have been either convicted or being tried in specialized courts.
In its long and unusually detailed statement, the Interior Ministry listed names of ten individuals that the protesters demanded their release, explaining the charges against them.
One of the names mentioned on the list is Mohammad al-Bajady, a co-founder of ACPRA. Al-Bajady is in jail after he was “categorically sentenced to four years in prison after being charged of communicating with foreign parties to destabilize security and other crimes,” the ministry said.
Al-Bajady had been held for a year without charges for supporting the families of detainees.