SAUDI ARABIA: MAN EXECUTED FOR ‘JOINING A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION’

Saudi authorities on September 9, 2025 executed Sultan bin Amer bin Abdullah Al-Shehri, bringing the total number of executions in 2025 close to 300.
According to a statement by the Saudi Ministry of Interior, Al-Shehri was charged with “joining a terrorist organization,” without specifying which organization, as well as “harboring wanted individuals” and “manufacturing weapons.”
Sanad Human Rights Organization views the repeated use of vague charges such as “belonging to a terrorist group” or “harboring fugitives” as part of a systematic pattern by Saudi authorities to eliminate political opponents and silence independent voices, in the absence of transparency and fair-trial guarantees. 
Despite the severity of the punishment, the official statement failed to cite any specific act that would legally justify the imposition of ta’zir (discretionary) execution under Saudi Arabia’s counter-terrorism or criminal procedure laws.