SAUDI TOP COURT OVERTURNS DEATH SENTENCE OVER FACEBOOK POST

Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court has set aside a death sentence imposed on Sri Lankan migrant worker Anojan Sivarasa over a Facebook comment, Sri Lanka's Deputy Foreign Minister Arun Hemachandra said. Hemachandra said the ruling was issued on Wednesday and thanked the legal teams and authorities of both countries for their efforts. Sri Lankan lawmaker Faizer Mustafa, who has taken part in negotiations with Saudi authorities over the case, confirmed the death sentence had been overturned and said officials are reviewing the Supreme Court's decision. It remains unclear whether further legal proceedings will follow or how long Sivarasa will stay in detention. He had been sentenced to death in September after a Saudi appellate court convicted him of blasphemy against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad.

The case stemmed from an online dispute in June, after footage circulated showing a man kicking a dog in the presence of Hindu pilgrims, which prompted arguments online. During the exchange, one user posted derogatory remarks about a Hindu deity, and Sivarasa responded with a comment in Tamil insulting the Prophet Muhammad. He deleted the comment and posted a video apologising, but a screenshot was passed to his employer and to Saudi officials, leading to his arrest on 2 July. He had initially been sentenced to five years in prison and fined three million Saudi riyals, around £600,000, by the Al-Ahsa Criminal Court, before the death sentence was imposed on appeal. Sri Lanka's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Omar Lebbe Ameer Ajwad, visited Sivarasa at Dammam Central Prison on 8 October following reports he had been assaulted by a cellmate. Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said Sivarasa suffered bruises and was moved to another cell, while Sri Lankan MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam said the family had been told their son was stabbed in the head and was in danger; prison authorities, according to Herath, said he had suffered only scratches and fingernail injuries and that no weapon had been used.

Sri Lanka's government said it met President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on 21 September and assured Sivarasa's family it would seek a pardon, offering to cover his legal fees. A four-member Sri Lankan legal team filed an appeal against the death sentence with Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court through a local law firm. Sivarasa's family said they had had no direct contact with him since 28 September. Human Rights Watch joined calls for Saudi Arabia to spare his life, with senior researcher Joey Shea saying Saudi authorities should end their use of what she described as abusive laws to impose severe sentences for speech-related offences, particularly against migrant workers. Ajwad said Sivarasa was in good health and that prison authorities were attending to his welfare.