Raif Badawi now faced with a death sentence – #FreeRaif – Prisoner of Conscience

Raif Badawi, the Saudi blogger jailed and sentenced to 1000 lashes for simply running a website that called for the peaceful discussion of religion and religious issue, now faces a potential death sentence. The UK’s Independent reports … Mr Badawi’s wife, Ensaf Haidar, told The Independent in a series of messages that judges in Saudi Arabia’s criminal court … Read more

The slow Torture of Raif Badawi by Saudi Arabia – #RaifBadawi

Saudi Arabia is in the news, and it is rather important to keep it there and ensure that the spotlight remains, not because of the passing of the baton of power (at the age of 90 King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz died yesterday), but rather due to them being a state that is, and has been for a … Read more

The pervasive and endemic intolerance of Islam

It is a sad fact there even in the 21st century, a 7th century mindset still prevails in some places. Is that a factual statement? Indeed it is, the above diagram illustrates the nations that have explicit laws that oppress those that dare to simply stop believing religious nonsense, and if you still doubt this, … Read more

Saudi Atheist Facing 10 Years in Jail and 1,000 Lashes for Blasphemy Receives Prize from Reporters Without Borders

A very brave Saudi Arabian blogger, Raif Badawi (pictured above), was sentenced to 10 years in jail and 1,000 lashes for the (from the viewpoint of the Saudi authorities) hideous crime of starting a progressive website. It contained ideas that truly frightened and terrified them, for example religious tolerance and women’s rights, and so they came down hard on … Read more

Saudi Arabia to arrest bloggers for the “crime” of atheism

The news from Saudi Arabia is as dire as ever, Gulf News reports … Manama: Saudi Arabia’s Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has asked the interior ministry to arrest several people for apostasy and atheism. The commission did not divulge the number of people whose arrest it requested, but it … Read more

How to Embarrass Saudi Arabia in one easy lesson

The Center For Inquiry representative Josephine Macintosh delivered a statement that was very critical of Saudi Arabia for its repeated assaults on freedom of religion, belief, and expression at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland on June 23, 2014 … The representative from Saudi Arabia, who sits on the human rights council, tried to step … Read more