Second flogging of Saudi blogger delayed on medical grounds
Rights group Amnesty International says Raif Badawi, a Saudi blogger sentenced to 50 lashes every Friday for 20 weeks, had his second round postponed through ill health
Saudi authorities on Friday postponed the second round of public flogging of a blogger convicted of insulting Islam after a doctor concluded that his wounds from the first 50 lashes had not yet healed, a leading human rights group said.
Amnesty International said authorities delayed administering the 50 new lashes to Raif Badawi, which were set to take place after midday prayers. The group said Badawi was taken to a prison clinic in the morning for a check-up and that the doctor found that “he would not be able to withstand another round of lashes at this time.”
According to the group, the doctor recommended Badawi’s flogging be postponed for a week.
Badawi’s first public flogging took place last Friday before dozens of people in the Red Sea city of Jiddah. The father of three was taken to a public square, his feet and hands bound, and whipped 50 times on his back before being taken back to prison.
A person close to Badawi’s case said King Abdullah’s Royal Court late last year referred the case to the Supreme Judicial Council, which has the power to refer it to yet another court. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of government retribution, said the Council has yet to respond.
The 90-year-old Saudi monarch, who was diagnosed recently with pneumonia, has not been involved in the proceedings.