A hearing for fitness influencer and women’s rights activist Manahel al-Otaibi is scheduled to take place before Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) on 26 May 2025. Manahel al-Otaibi has been imprisoned since 16 November 2022. On 9 January 2024 the SCC sentenced Manahel al-Otaibi to 11 years in prison for “terrorist offences” in a secret trial. She was initially charged with violating the Anti-Cyber Crime Law, then faced additional charges under the counter-terror law due to her tweets in support of women’s rights as well as posting photos of herself at the mall without an abaya (a traditional loose-fitting long-sleeved robe) on Snapchat. Saudi authorities have subjected her to torture and other ill-treatment, as well as enforced disappearance.
