Female Egyptian Media Activist Rania al-Assal Detained in Saudi Arabia

Female Egyptian Media Activist Rania al-Assal Detained in Saudi Arabia

Saudi security forces are said to have detained a well-known female Egyptian media activist, Rania al-Assal, in the holy city of Mecca while she was conducting the Umrah Hajj (minor pilgrimage). According to social media users, al-Assal had travelled to Saudi Arabia for the small pilgrimage almost 50 days ago, but she has not been heard from since, and nobody knows where she is.

Al-Assal is a critic of Riyadh’s policies in the West Asia region and a steadfast supporter of the anti-Israel resistance front as well as the oppressed Palestinian and Yemeni nations. She has repeatedly criticised Saudi Arabia’s brutal siege of the conflict-ridden nation and has been a fierce opponent of its military campaign in the impoverished nation of Yemen.

The social media activists have called on Saudi authorities to provide information on al-Assal’s whereabouts and expressed grave concern over her fate. The detention of al-Assal is consistent with Riyadh’s use of arbitrary detention to target dissenting voices, particularly those who speak out against its policies.

This is not the first time that a female activist has been detained by Saudi regime forces while conducting the Umrah Hajj. Marwa al-Sabri, a Yemeni woman, was taken into custody by Saudi authorities in early February, and her detention was denounced by Yemen’s National Committee for Women as a flagrant breach of all ethical, moral, and religious standards.

The detention of al-Assal and al-Sabri highlights the need for increased efforts to protect human rights and freedom of expression, particularly in the context of religious pilgrimages where individuals should be able to practice their faith without fear of arbitrary detention or persecution.

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