Specialized Criminal Court

The Specialized Criminal Court (SCC; Arabic: المحكمة الجزائية المتخصصة) is a non-Sharia court[1] created in Saudi Arabia in 2008[2] that tries suspected terrorists[3] and human rights activists.[4][5] On 26 June 2011, the court started trials of 85 people suspected of being involved in Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and the 2003 Riyadh compound bombings[3] and in September 2011 another 41 al-Qaeda suspects appeared in the court.[6] In the same year, the court held trial sessions of human rights activists, including co-founder Mohammed Saleh al-Bejadi of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA)[5] and Mubarak Zu'air, a lawyer for long-term prisoners,[2] and Khaled al-Johani, who spoke to BBC Arabic Television at a protest in Riyadh,[7][8][9] thus becoming known as "the bravest man in Saudi Arabia".[7] The court convicted 16 of the human rights activists to sentences of 5–30 years' imprisonment on 22 November 2011.[4]

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  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference KSA_Spec_Crim_Court was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AI_alRashudi16_sentenced was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference HRW_albjady was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bloomberg_41_alQ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AOL_alJohani was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBC_alJohani was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference AI_22Feb2012_in_court was invoked but never defined (see the help page).