PUBLIC AI Index: MDE 23/006/2007

01 February 2007

Further Information on UA 299/06 (MDE 23/005/2006, 23 November 2006) and follow-ups (MDE 23/003/2006, 09 November 2006; MDE 23/003/2007, 26 January 2007) - Fear of Imminent Execution /Prison Conditions/Medical Concern

SAUDI ARABIA Hadi Sa'eed Al-Muteef (m), Saudi Arabian national, aged 31

Suliamon Olyfemi (m), Nigerian national, aged about 28

Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa (f), Indonesian national

Ahmed al-Bahrani (m), Saudi Arabian

An unknown number of others under sentence of death

Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef's health has improved, and he has been released from King Khaled Hospital in Najran, in the Western Province of Saudi Arabia. He has been returned to prison, but is no longer believed to be held in solitary confinement.

Amnesty International has received encouraging news from the Saudi Arabian Human Rights Commission (HRC) about Hadi Sa'eed Al-Muteef's case. In response to an appeal from a member of the UA network, the President of the HRC wrote a letter, dated 13 January 2007, stating that the death sentence against Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef had been commuted to a prison term,and thathe is beingconsidered fora total pardon. The letter did not specify when his death sentence was commuted, or the length ofthe prison term imposed on him. Amnesty International believes that Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef is a prisoner of conscience, detained solely for exercising his right to peaceful freedom of expression, and calls for his immediate and unconditional release.

The President of the HRC alsoindicated in his letter that the cases of Nigerian national Suliamon Olyfemi and Indonesian national Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa, who may be facing imminent execution, were being raised with the relevant Saudi Arabian authorities. The letter made no reference to the case of Saudi Arabian national Ahmed al-Bahrani, who is also at risk of imminent execution.

Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef was arrested in 1994 and sentenced to death in 1997 on a vague charge relating to comments he made that were deemed to be contrary to Shar’ia. Suliamon Olyfemi was reportedly sentenced to death in connection with the murder of a policeman in Jeddah in 2002. Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa was arrested in connection with murder in September 1999. She is said to suffer from a mental illness and "confessed" to the murder during police interrogation. Ahmad al-Bahrani was sentenced to death for murder and was reportedly pardoned in exchange for payment of diya(financial compensation). However he is said to be unable to pay the first instalment of the diya and is therefore at risk of imminent execution.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English, Arabic or your own language:

- welcoming the encouraging news provided in the letter from the President of the HRC;

- seeking clarification of the date when the death sentence against Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef was commuted and of the length of his prison term;

- calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Hadi Sa’eed Al-Muteef as a prisoner of conscience;

- seeking assurances that he is given full access to the appropriate medical care necessary;

- welcoming the news that the cases of Suliamon Olyfemi and Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa are being raised with the relevant authorities and seeking clarification of the steps being taken to enable the two effective exercise of the rights to judicial review and to seek pardon;

- reiterating appeals to the authorities to commute the death sentences of all those on death row in Saudi Arabia as a matter of urgency, including Suliamon Olyfemi, Siti Zainab Binti Duhri Rupa and Ahmad al-Bahrani, with a view to the abolition of the death penalty;

- urging the authorities to ensure that international standards for fair trial are observed.

APPEALS TO:

King Abdullah Bin ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Al-Saud

The Custodian of the two Holy Mosques

Office of His Majesty The King

Royal Court

Riyadh

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Salutation: Your Majesty

His Royal Highness Prince Naif bin ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Al-Saud

Minister of the Interior

Ministry of the Interior

P.O. Box 2933

Airport Road

Riyadh 11134

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Fax: + 966 1 403 1185 / 403 3614

Salutation: Your Royal Highness

His Royal Highness Prince Saud al-Faisal bin ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Al-Saud

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Nasseriya Street

Riyadh 11124

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Fax: + 966 1 403 0645

Salutation: Your Royal Highness

COPIES TO: diplomatic representatives of Saudi Arabia accredited to your country.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 15 March 2007.********