January 2021 Minutes

Many thanks to FL for these minutes. If you prefer, you can read them as a PDF.

Glasgow West Amnesty International

Attendees: CL (Chair and co-lead on Saudi Women Rights Defenders), CA (co-lead on Saudi Women Rights Defenders), FL (Secretary), CC, CL, JG (Treasurer), JG, KM, MR (Urgent Actions, Twitter), Z, AH

PD (Country Coordinator for Saudi Arabia and Yemen)

AB, B, EC, JA, JW, MW (Perth Amnesty Group)

Apologies: CCa

Talk: Human Rights in Saudi Arabia

We were joined by the Country Coordinator for Saudi Arabia and Yemen, Paul Dawson, who gave a fantastic talk on human rights in Saudi Arabia. The Glasgow West Amnesty group has recently taken on the Saudi Women Rights Defenders as our local term case.

Paul has kindly shared his notes with us. These are available at the bottom of these minutes.

Following his talk, we also had an interesting Q&A.

Paul will share any updates on the campaign, including a potential to link with Amnesty's Football Welcomes Campaign, with the group in due course. Craig and Christine are the group's leads on the Women's Human Rights Defenders case so please contact them if you have any queries/ campaign ideas.

Women Human Rights Defenders (CA + CL)

Please could everyone print out the attached letter addressed to the Saudi Ambassador and post it as soon as possible. Alternatively you could adapt the letter. If you find the website for the Saudi Embassy there is the option of clicking on a "contact the ambassador" button which will allow you to email an appeal for the imprisoned women:

[https://embassies.mofa.gov.sa/sites/uk/EN/Ambassador/pages/Contact.aspx]{.ul}.

Also, it would be great if everyone could write to their MPs and ask them to raise the issue of the imprisoned women's rights defenders at any opportunity. If you would like more details then please get in touch with Christine or Craig.

Case Summary:

On 15 May 2018, a group of activists, including the country's leading women human rights defenders, who campaigned for the right to drive and the end of repressive guardianship laws, were arbitrarily arrested. For the first three months of their detention, at least ten of the activists, including several of the women, endured torture, sexual abuse and other forms of ill-treatment when they were held incommunicado and in solitary confinement with no access to their families or lawyers.

A year later, the Saudi authorities charged and tried the women for their human rights activism. At least two human rights defenders detained in the same wave remain to date without charge or trial. Following the first trial session in March 2019, several Saudi women activists were released on temporary and provisional basis (Iman al-Nafjan, Aziza al-Yousef, Amal al-Harbi, Dr. Ruqayyah al-Mharib, Shadan al-Anezi, Dr. Abir Namankni, and Dr. Hatoon al-Fassi and an anonymous activist), while five remain to this day in detention (Loujain al-Hathloul, Samar Badawi, Naseema al-Sada, Nouf Abdulaziz and Maya'a al-Zahrani) on charges related to their campaigning for women's rights.

Secretary's Report (FL)

Local Group Update

Please follow the link to read the latest Local Groups Update:

Local Groups Update

Group action for Nazanin

Most local groups will be very familiar with the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian dual-national who has been in detention in Iran since April 2016. As you will know, Amnesty are campaigning hard for her to be fully released (she is currently under a form of house arrest in Tehran) and allowed to return to her family here the UK. As part of this work we will be sending a letter to a local Glasgow paper highlighting the case.

For more background and context, here's a link to Amnesty's most recent press release on Nazanin's case, along with another dual-national detained in Iran, Anoosheh Ashoori:

Press release on Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori

and a campaign update:

Nazanin and Anoosheh campaign update.

Write for Rights 2020 Sum Up

Our group's activities:

• Nov and Dec: 10 Weeks of W4R on our social media feeds -- followers
  were introduced to one case per week and shown how to take action

• Thurs 10th Dec: Collaboration with Amnesty Scotland Online Activism
  group

• Sat 12th Dec: Write for Rights workshop with Interfaith Glasgow's
  Weekend Club

• Jan 2021: Write for Rights at MILK café -- cancelled due to COVID
  restrictions (hope to do something together in Nov-Dec 2021)

Not taken action yet? The Write for Rights materials are still available online:

Write for Rights

and

WfR 2020 Page.

Urgent Actions (MR)

Thank you to MR for sharing these urgent actions.

10 Hongkongers sentenced in unfair trial

UA: 10 Hongkongers sentenced in unfair trial

Ten of the 12 Hongkongers arrested in August 2020 by the Chinese coast guard were sentenced on 30 December 2020 without a fair trial. Having been detained for more than four months, the 10 individuals still have no access to their families or family-appointed lawyers

Students allege ill-treatment in detention

UA: Students allege ill-treatment in detention

Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse an overwhelmingly peaceful protest held at the Boğaziçi University on 4 January. At least 45 students were detained during dawn raids between 5 to 7 January after their alleged participation in a protest at the Boğaziçi University in Istanbul. Many among them have alleged torture or other ill-treatment, including being handcuffed on their back, beaten and some LGBTI+ students threatened with rape and subjected to insults. The prosecuting authorities must investigate these allegations and bring law enforcement officers found to be responsible to justice.

Execution risk for Iranian-Swedish academic

UA: Execution risk for Iranian-Swedish academic

Iranian-Swedish academic Ahmadreza Djalali has been held incommunicado
in Tehran's Evin prison since 24 November 2020, when he learned that his
death sentence for "corruption on earth" (efsad-e fel-arz) was to be
carried out imminently. In late December 2020, his family learned that
Ahmadreza Djalali's execution was halted for one month. He remains at
risk of execution.

Lengthy imprisonment for retired Uyghur doctor

UA: Lengthy imprisonment for retired Uyghur doctor

Retired Uyghur doctor Gulshan Abbas was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment in a secret trial for "taking part in organized terrorism, aiding terrorist activities and seriously disrupting social order" in March 2019. Her family learned about this sentencing through a trusted source 21 months later in December 2020. They believe that Gulshan Abbas's lengthy sentencing is linked to the activism for Uyghurs of Gulshan Abbas' relatives in the US. Gulshan Abbas has multiple chronic diseases that require constant monitoring and regular medical treatment. The fact that Gulshan has no access to her family members for more than two years raises serious concerns for her health and wellbeing.

You can download the full PDF or click Take Action at the top of the page for a link to a pre-prepared email/letter action.

Keep checking the Urgent Actions sites for actions you can take from your home:

https://www.amnesty.org.uk/urgent-actions

Upcoming Glasgow West activities

February 11th -- Lynnda Wardle (Programme Manager at Interfaith Glasgow). Interfaith Glasgow is a project which aims to support and develop positive engagement between people from diverse religion and belief backgrounds in Glasgow. She helps run the Weekend Club which aims to address the social isolation experienced by asylum seekers, refugees and new migrants in Glasgow.

March 11th -- Annual planning meeting (more information to follow)

New meeting venue? - We look forward to being able to meet again in person. When this is eventually possible, we are considering changing our meeting venue. Please get in touch with Freya (mail\@glasgowwestamnesty.org.uk) if you have any venue suggestions or requirements.

AOB

Human Rights Film Festival: "Document"

Document Human Rights Film Festival returns for its 18th edition, prompting new ways of viewing, resisting, and affirming our shared relationship to human rights.

Taking a deep dive into the 'politics of viewing' and the role of cinema in a world of perpetual emergency, the programme features twelve feature documentaries, a desktop-documentary performance, a critical reading group, an industry-focused critical forum, filmmaker Q&As, workshops and discussions, and a director masterclass - all available UK wide. Runs from Sunday 24 January to Sunday 31 January 2021.

Document: Human Rights Film Festival-2021

Next meeting

Thursday 11th February -- Talk about Interfaith Glasgow and the Weekend Club. We use the online platform WebEx for our meetings. There is the option to dial in from a landline or mobile if you don't have internet access.

Joining instructions:

Join from the meeting link - WebEx

Join by meeting number - Meeting number (access code): 181 849 3382 and meeting password: AIUK (2485 from phones and video systems)

Join by phone - +44-20-7660-8149 United Kingdom Toll

Any issues get in touch with Mal at malcolm.dingwall-smith\@amnesty.org.uk

Paul's Notes

Amnesty's work on Saudi Arabia

• Amnesty's first report on Saudi Arabia was in 1990

• In 2000 the last country campaign by Amnesty was on Saudi Arabia (also first campaign on a Middle East country). Focussing on the secretiveness of the Saudi judicial system which remains to this day and this allows abuses to flourish.

• Saudi Arabia is a closed country for Amnesty research visits or meeting with Saudi officials despite numerous requests by Amnesty

• Saudi is currently a priority country for Amnesty.

• Two concurrent campaigns currently running:

  • Politicised trials before the Specialised Criminal Court

  • Detention of women's rights activists.

Human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia

a) Arbitrary arrests and detentions

• Mass and arbitrary detention of political prisoners and prisoners of conscience.

• Scores of prisoners of conscience, detained solely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association or peaceful assembly, remain in detention.

• Detention is often without charge or trial and incommunicado detention is common. Trials are often summary.

• Unfair trials of activists often accused under 'terrorism' legislation continue.

• Widespread abuses are possible because of the judiciary system

b) No room for dissent

• There are no political parties, trade unions or human rights organizations

c)Crackdown on activists

• Since Prince Mohamed bin Salman became crown prince on 21 June 2017 the human rights situation has deteriorated sharply.

• Mid-September 2017 a wave of arrests with more than 20 prominent religious figures, writers, journalists, academics and activists arrested.

• Since May 2018, at least 15 activists, including several women human rights defenders have been detained in Saudi Arabia. These include Loujain al-Hathloul, Iman al-Nafjan and Aziza al-Yousef.

• On 19 May 2018, the Saudi Press Agency that seven individuals had been arrested for their "Suspicious contact with foreign entities", "Recruiting people working in sensitive government positions" and "Providing financial support to hostile entities abroad with the aim of undermining the security and stability of the Kingdom and shaking the country's social fabric".

• In July 2018, Samar Badawi and Nassima al-Sada were arbitrarily detained. Nassima has been in solitary confinement since February 2019.

• In November 2018, it was reported that several of these activists had been tortured, subjected to sexual violence and otherwise ill-treated. The women were initially held incommunicado and in solitary confinement without access to their families and lawyers.

• Since April 2019, at least a further 14 individuals have been arrested including journalists, writers and academics.

• Of the eleven women on trial before the Criminal Court in Riyadh (first session was held on 13 March 2019) eight have now been temporarily released but remain on trial. Loujain al-Hathloul, Nouf Abdulaziz and Maya'a al-Zahrani remain detained. Many were key campaigners against the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia and campaigners to end the male guardianship system.

• Diplomats and journalists have been barred from attending the trial.

• On 28 December 2020, Loujain was sentenced by the Specialised Criminal Court to five years and eight months' imprisonment. Two years and 10 months of the sentence were suspended and time she has already served will count meaning she could be released in March 2020 but she may appeal the sentence.

d) Systematic discrimination of women

• Women and girls face discrimination in both law and practice

• Discrimination is largely a result of the male guardianship system

• Women have subordinate status to men under law in matters such as
  marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance.

• 11/03/2002 fire at girl's school in Mecca killed 15 girls. The religious police prevented some of the girls leaving the building and hindered rescue workers because the girls were not correctly dressed. There was an inquiry and one of the outcomes was that girl's schools were brought under the control of the Ministry of Education rather than the conservative agency that had previously controlled them.

• In 2004 a popular television presenter was severely beaten by her husband and the photos appeared in the press. She had reportedly answered the telephone without her husband's approval.

• In August 2013 a law was introduced to criminalise domestic violence with a punishment of up to one year in jail and a fine of up to 50,000 riyals. The punishments can be doubled for repeat offenders. But women remain inadequately protected and there is a lack of competent authorities to enforce the law which is therefore largely unimplemented in practice.

• Launch of domestic abuse helpline

• Women were allowed to stand and vote in the municipal elections
  in 2015.

• In February 2018, the Ministry of Commerce and Investment announced that women did not need the permission of a male guardian to start a business.

• At the Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in March 2014 the government committed to abolishing the male guardianship system and to allow women greater freedom to travel, study, work and marry but there has been no noticeable improvement.

• In 2011 the Women2Drive campaign was launched and those that have supported the campaign have faced harassment and arrest.

• In December 2014 two women drivers were arrested at the UAE border and were charged under terrorism offences. Now released.

• 26 September 2017 government announced that women would be allowed to drive and this came into force on June 2018.

• Raif and Waleed - More info on AIUK site

e) Executions

• Saudi Arabia has one of the highest rates of execution in the world both in absolute numbers and per capita. Saudi Arabia is in the top three countries for executions -- China & Iran higher.

• Saudi Arabia has expanded the scope of the death penalty to include non-violent offences such as apostasy, drug dealing, sodomy and 'witchcraft' therefore do not fall under the category of 'most serious crimes' under international law

• Executions are usually by public beheading although women are
  sometimes shot.

• Executed bodies are sometimes displayed in public.

• The death penalty is used as a political weapon against the Shi'a
  minority

• Those under sentence of death and their families are often not informed of their imminent execution and bodies are often not returned to families.

• Many people in Saudi Arabia sentenced to death and executed are charged guilty following seriously flawed court proceedings that routinely fall far short of international fair trial standards. They are often convicted solely on the basis of "confessions" obtained under torture and other ill-treatment, denied legal representation in trials which are held in secret, and are not kept informed of the progress of the legal proceedings in their case.

• Foreign nationals are often not provided with interpretation assistance.

• More than 2,000 people executed between 1985 and 2016, In 2015 -- 158+, In 2016 -- 154+, In 2017 -- 146, In 2018 -- 149, In 2019 -- 184 (178 men, six women. Just over half foreign nationals, majority of executions were for murder or drug related offences but there was an increased use of the death penalty as a political weapon against dissidents from the Shia minority) and In 2020 -- 27 (provisional figure).

• On 23 April 2019, 37 people were executed on terrorism charges. Most of those executed were Shi'a men after sham trials which relied on confessions extracted under torture. 11 of the men had been convicted of spying for Iran. At least 14 were executed after having been convicted of violent offences related to their participation in anti-government demonstrations in the Eastern Province between 2011 and 2012.

• Scores of people remain on death row but the actual figure is unknown as death sentences are not often reported in the media.

Cases:

• Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa, an Indonesian domestic worker and mother of two, was executed by beheading in Medina on 14 April 2015 for killing her female employer in 1999 who had reportedly continually mistreated her. She reportedly suffered from mental illness and neither her family or the Indonesian government was notified in advance of her execution. The authorities had waited 15 years so that the youngest relative of the victim could decide whether to demand her execution as retribution or pardon Siti. She was alleged to have 'confessed' in 1999 but received no legal representation during her detention or trial and police believed she was mentally ill at this time.

• On 13 September 2018 Said al-Sai'ari was executed in the city of Najran, in the southwest of Saudi Arabia. He was found guilty of the murder of another Saudi Arabian man, by the same court that concluded that there was not enough evidence to convict him.

• Suliamon Olufemi. A Nigerian national who was sentenced to death after any unfair trial and has been in prison awaiting execution since 2002.

  Document on AIUK website

Juvenile offenders:

• The use of the death penalty for crimes committed by people younger than 18 is prohibited under international human rights law.

• Since 1993 eight juvenile offenders have been executed in Saudi Arabia. Probably between 15 and 17 at the time of their offence.

• Abdulkareem al-Hawaj was executed in April 2019 as part of the 37 after being involved in the demonstrations. He was 16 at the time of his arrest.

• Recently reported that in August 2018 the Public Prosecution had sought the death penalty for Murtaja Qureiris. He was 13 at the time of his arrest and had been involved in protests in the Eastern Province since the age of 10. Has now been sentenced to 12 years in prison.

• A number of other juvenile offenders are currently on death row.

• In April 2020, Saudi Arabia announced that it planned to end the use of the death penalty against people below the age of 18 at the time of the crime in cases not involving the counter-terrorism law.

• 27 August 2020, Saudi Arabia's Human Rights Commission announced that the country's public prosecutor had ordered a review into the death sentences of Ali al-Nimr, Abdullah al-Zaher and Dawood a-Marhourn. The three are Shia activists who were all arrested as children in 2012 and charged with offences relating to their participation in anti-government protests in the Eastern Province.

Extrajudicial executions:

• Jamal Khashoggi. UN report released 19 June 2019. States he was the victim of 'an extrajudicial killing for which the state of Saudi Arabia is responsible under human rights law', and that 'there is credible evidence, warranting further investigation of high-level Saudi officials' individual liability, including the Crown Prince's'. Amnesty is calling on the UN to launch a follow up investigation.

f) Torture

• Foreign nationals are often denied interpretation facilities

• Torture and ill-treatment are routine, common and widespread. It is used to extract confessions and to enforce discipline. Prisoners have died as a result of torture. Perpetrators are never brought to justice.

g) Cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments

• Raif mentioned previously

• There does not appear to be an upper limit on the number of lashes that can be given in a sentence. The most Amnesty is aware of is 4,000.

• Amputations and cross-amputations are carried out.

• Ruth Cosrojas, a Filipino domestic worker, was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment and 300 lashes after an unfair trial in October 2013 when she was convicted of organising the sale of sex. When she was released in September 2014, she had received 150 lashes.

• 02 February 2016 Ashraf Fayadh, a Palestinian poet, had his death sentence overturned but was resentenced to eight years in prison and 800 lashes. He was charged with apostasy due to his supposed questioning of religion and spreading atheist thought via his poetry. He was also charged with having photos of women on his mobile.

h) Refugees

• Recent report on Ethiopian migrants.

• Since March 2020, the Huthis in Yemen have expelled thousands of Ethiopian migrant workers and their families to Saudi Arabia where they are being held in life threating conditions.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign policy

Influence

• Saudi Arabia uses its financial and economic influence to prevent discussion of its human rights record:

  • It is one of the world's largest spenders on defence

  • It is a source of economic aid to many poorer countries

  • Oil

Yemen

• On 25 March 2015, Saudi Arabia began a military campaign in Yemen against the Shi's Huthi and their allies.

• All parties to the conflict in Yemen have repeatedly committed violations of international law resulting in horrific suffering for civilians.

• Saudi-led coaliton has repeatedly violated the laws of war and war crimes have.been committed with , involving aerial bombardment that has killed hundreds of civilians. Hospitals, schools, markets and factories have been hit as well as civilian homes and civilian vehicles and vehicles carrying humanitarian assistance.

• Huthi forces have indiscriminately shelled civilian-populated areas especially in Tai'z (Yemen's third largest city). They have laid anti-vehicle mines indiscrimately, used banned anti-personnel mines and recruited children to fight.

• In July 2018, Amnesty reported on how Yemeni security forces that are backed by the UAE together with UAE troops operating in southern Yemen have been carrying out hundreds of arbitrary arrests and committing serious human rights violations, including enforced disappearance and torture and other ill-treatment, mostly under the pretext of 'fighting terrorism'. An opaque structure of competing security forces and a network of informal and formal detention centres makes it difficult to find accurate information on the cases.

• October 2018 YouGov asked "As far as you are aware, which, if any, of the following countries are currently, or have recently, been involved in ongoing armed conflict?" 42% of respondents didn't identify Yemen from the list. Shows lack of public awareness in the UK of the conflict.

• Consequences of the conflict:

  • https://news.un.org/en/focus/yemen

  • https://www.una.org.uk/yemen-crisis-key-facts

  • https://www.unicef.org/emergencies/yemen-crisis

  • The United Nations have described Yemen as the 'world's worst
    humanitarian crisis' in what was already the Middle East's
    poorest country.

  • The country is ravaged by preventable diseases and teeters on
    the verge of a historic famine.

  • 24 million people (about 80% of the population) including more
    than 12 million children need some kind of humanitarian or
    protection assistance to survive.

  • 17 million people are short of food.

  • Sanitation and clean water are in short supply.

  • Half of all health facilities are damaged or unable to function.

  • Around 3.5 million people are internally displaced.

  • In October 2019 the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (https://www.acleddata.com/) announced that more than 100,000 people had been killed since 2015 including over 12,000 civilians in direct attacks.

  • The Yemen Data Project (https://www.yemendataproject.org/) gives a figure of 8.757 civilian deaths and 9,797 civilian casualties.

  • There have been 21,998 coalition air raids and these have picked up during 2020 with a large number where it was not known who was responsible.

• Why the conflict?

  • Proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia

  • Geo-political aims of Saudi Arabia and UAE

  • US and UK involvement

Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia

• Secrecy, corruption, lies

• Military equipment has been provided by the US and the UK. Both have also provided logistical support and intelligence eg targeting information, inflight refuelling

• But it isn't just US and UK equipment. Canada, France, Spain, Montenegro, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Turkey, Italy, China. Czech Republic, Slovakia, Belgium, Sweden, Croatia have all sold arms to Saudi Arabia or UAE.

• According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute between 2014-2018, Saudi Arabia become the world's largest arms importer, accounting for 12% of all imports, and an increase of 192% over 2009-2013

• 88% of these arms came from the US. This is actually insignificant for the US total exports (0.125%) but important to individual factories/communities.

• 22% of US arms are to Saudi Arabia up from 4.9% in the previous five years.

• Planned deliveries to Saudi Arabia between 2019-2023 include 98 combat aircraft, seven missile defence systems and 83 tanks from the US, 737 armoured vehicles from Canada, five frigates from Spain and short ballistic missiles from Ukraine.

• Top five exporters to Saudi Arabia over this period are US, UK, France, Spain and Germany. Totalling \$5.6 billion. Sharp decrease over the last three years from UK with increases from France, Spain and Germany.

• Since the start of the Yemen war the UK has exported combat aircraft, combat naval vessels, missiles, bombs, torpedoes, rockets, sniper rifles.

• Trump has vetoed a bipartisan effort by Congress to block the sales of \$8 billion in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

• Russia's share of the Middle East defence market has doubled in three year largely because the Syrian conflict has enabled Russia to use the conflict as a testing ground for its weapons.

• Saudi Arabia is in talks to buy S400 missile systems from Russia.

• Russia will modernise the UAE's Pantsir -- S1 systems and has purchased \$40 million of anti-tank missiles.

• High Court ruling on UK arms sales:

  • In July 2017, the High Court ruled against the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) ruling that the government is entitled to continue authorising arms supplies to Saudi Arabia. Half of the evidence was heard in secret on national security grounds. This secret evidence was apparently crucial in the ruling.

  • 12 April 2018 CAAT went to the Court of Appeal and on 4 May 2018 was granted the right to appeal

  • April 2019 appeal hearing which Amnesty, HRW and Rights Watch UK made expert submissions in the legal challenge.

  • In June 2019, the court ruled that British arms sales were unlawful stating that the government "made no concluded assessments of whether the Saudi-led coalition had committed violations of international humanitarian law in the past, during the Yemen conflict, and made no attempt to do so".

  • Difference between unlawful and illegal. Unlawful against the law but not necessarily criminal.

  • But they ruled that arms sales would not have to be immediately suspended and that ministers had to 'reconsider the matter' and make further considerations when granting any new export licences.

  • The government though did suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia and promised to appeal the ruling.

  • The government has since announced the suspension has been breached at least three times (radio parts, air cooling system and repair equipment for IED detection).

  • In September 2019 a United Nations report concluded that the US, UK and France may be complicit in war crimes by Yemen by arming and providing support to the Saudi-led coalition.

  • 07 July 2020 Liz Truss announced that arms sales would resume and that the government's review had found no 'pattern' of Saudi Arabia air strikes that breached international law and that there had only been 'isolated incidents' of violations. "I have concluded that, notwithstanding the isolated incidents... Saudi Arabia has a genuine intent and the capacity to comply with international law."

  • The previous day the UK government had sanctioned 20 Saudi nationals for their involvement in the killing of Khashoggi.

What can you do?

• What happens in the Kingdom stays in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia is a closed country for human rights organisations.

• Saudi Arabia one of many countries in the region with abysmal human rights record.

• Activists and their families within Saudi Arabia who contact Amnesty are at risk of the punitive measures outlined above.

• Vital that Saudi authorities are aware that the world is watching but it is important to be effective and targeted.

Who can you target? In Saudi Arabia:

• King Salman -- Has dementia. Only person that can grant clemency, release prisoners

• Mohammed bin Salman -- The King's son. Most important man in Saudi Arabia. Minister of defence but also in charge of the economy and the "vision 2030' project. Crown prince

• Mohammed bin Nayaf -- Minister of interior. Responsible for internal security.

Who can you target outside?

• Saudi embassy

• Your MP/ SMP

• Social media. Twitter. Saudis are one of the world's heaviest users
  of Twitter.

How can you follow the Middle East/Gulf team:

• Follow Paul and/or Middle East/Gulf team on Twitter

◦ \@pdawson_amnesty

◦ \@AIMidEastGulf

• Follow Middle East/Gulf team on Facebook

◦ https://www.facebook.com/AmnestyMEG.org.uk

• Website

◦ https://sites.google.com/site/aiukmeg/