Loujain Al Hathloul
The father of Saudi activist Loujain Al Hathloul said that Saudi authorities are torturing his daughter inside Saudi prison.
On his Twitter account, the Saudi citizen, Hathloul al-Hathloul, father of imprisoned activist Loujain Al Hathloul, tweeted about sexual harassment and torture his daughter is facing inside the prison.
He tweeted quoting a story from history: “Just a story from history. A girl screamed ‘O Mu’tasim’ (from a Roman jail) and this scream was engraved on the forehead of history."
And he added referring to his daughter: "There are many stories about the cause of that scream, but it is certain that she was not electrocuted, was not held incommunicado for more than four months, was not sexually harassed and did not threaten rape and murder thereafter."
In a report last month by Human Rights Watch said quoting “informed sources” that at least three of the women have undergone electric shocks, whipping and “forcible hugging and kissing.”
Another report from Amnesty International alleges they were “repeatedly tortured by electrocution and flogging, leaving some unable to walk or stand properly” and “subjected to sexual harassment,” The Star reported.
The reports found that Al Hathloul was being held in the Dhahban Prison alongside six other activists, including Samar Badawi, sister of imprisoned blogger Raif Bawai.
For his part, the opposition activist in Canada, Omar Abdul Aziz Al Zahrani, said that the targeting of Al Hathloul by the Saudi authorities is because she raised her voice, calling for granting women their rights and releasing detainees.
Al-Zahrani added: “Al Hathloul comes from a rich family and her demands were not personal. She was arrested twice in the past, which shows the anger of Saudi authorities at her.”
Al-Hathloul was detained by Saudi Arabian officials alongside several other prominent human rights advocates, in what many experts are calling a crackdown on activism in the country.
Reports said that the former adviser of the former royal court Saud Al Qahtani supervised the torture of activists, harassment and threats.
