Back وليد أبوالخير Arabic وليد ابوالخير ARZ Walíd Abú al-Chajr Czech Ŭalid Abu al-Ĥair Esperanto ولید ابوالخیر Persian Waleed Abu al-Khair French וליד אבו אל-ח'יר HE വലീദ് അബുൾഖൈർ Malayalam
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Waleed Abulkhair | |
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 Waleed Abulkhair in November 2012 | |
| Born | 17 June 1979 |
| Occupation(s) | Lawyer and human rights activist |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 daughter |
| Awards | Right Livelihood Award |
Waleed Sami Abulkhair (Arabic: وليد أبوالخير; born 17 June 1979) is a Saudi Arabian lawyer and human rights activist, and the head of the Monitor of Human Rights in Saudi Arabia (MHRSA) organization. He is the first activist to be prosecuted by the Terrorism Law[clarification needed]. He was arrested on 15 April 2014, and was sent to al-Ha'ir Prison while awaiting prosecution. On 6 July 2014, Abulkhair was sentenced to 15 years in prison by the Specialized Criminal Court, (10 years executed and five suspended) and a travel ban for another 15 years, in addition to a fine of 200,000 riyals (US$53,333). On 12 January 2015, the case returned to the Court of Appeals, after which the judge requested increasing the previous sentence, because Abulkhair refused to apologize. Thus, the judgment was tightened to 15-year executed. In response, Abulkhair prayed for God's victory and refused to recognize the legitimacy of the Specialized Criminal Court.[1][2] Abulkhair is incarcerated in the Dhahban Central Prison in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a facility used to hold high-profile political prisoners, as well as members of al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.[3][4]
In 2018, he was awarded the Right Livelihood Award, together with Abdullah al-Hamid and Mohammad Fahad al-Qahtani for "their visionary and courageous efforts, guided by universal human rights principles, to reform the totalitarian political system in Saudi Arabia."[5]
- ^ "Saudi Arabia: 15-Year Sentence for Prominent Activist". Human Rights Watch. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
- ^ "| Waleed Abulkhair Blog". waleedabulkhairen.com. Archived from the original on 7 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ Aldrich, Mark (18 April 2016). "Inside Raif Badawi's Prison Cell". Goshen, US: The Gad About Town. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
- ^ Javier El-Hage and Celine Assaf Boustani. (12 July 2016).Waleed Abulkhair sits in a Saudi jail for speaking out, The Washington Post
- ^ Jan M. Olsen. (24 September 2018). 3 Saudi human rights activists awarded "Alternative Nobel" Fox News