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Reporters Without Borders (RSF) strongly condemns the execution of Saudi journalist Turki al-Jasser, who was killed on June 14 after seven years of arbitrary imprisonment. Al-Jasser, who was in his 40s, is the first journalist to be sentenced to death and executed in Saudi Arabia under the rule of Mohammed bin Salman and the second in the world since 2020, according to RSF data. Riyadh's international allies must take all necessary measures, including sanctions, to put an end to this regime of terror targeting journalists.
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On June 14, the Saudi Interior Ministry announced Turki al-Jasser’s execution. The Saudi authorities had convicted him on several false charges of terrorism and high treason due to his online publications.
Turki al-Jasser is the first journalist to be executed following a death sentence in Saudi Arabia since Prince Mohammed bin Salman came to power in 2015. He is the second media professional worldwide to be executed after a death sentence since 2020, when Amadnews director Rouhollah Zam was put to death in Iran. Saudi Arabia, where repression of all dissent and criticism has increased, is the country with the third highest number of executions in the world after China and Iran, according to Amnesty International's 2024 report on the subject. The regime has carried out at least 88 executions since the beginning of 2025, according to Amnesty International.
Turki al-Jasser was the founder of the news blog Al-Mashhad Al-Saudi (“The Saudi Scene”), on which he regularly addressed sensitive topics such as women's rights and Palestine. The Saudi authorities accused him of being the anonymous author behind the X account known as Kashkool, which notably linked members of the Saudi royal family to alleged acts of corruption and human rights abuses.
“The execution of Turki al-Jasser marks a new and appalling milestone in Saudi Arabia: it is the first time in the political history of the Saudi kingdom that a journalist who was detained and then convicted has been executed following a judicial decision. His death is reminiscent of the horrific murder of Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, which a UN report concluded was ‘an extrajudicial killing for which the state of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is responsible.’ The killing of Turki al-Jasser is yet another alarming sign of the kingdom's horrific repression of any critical voices, and raises fears for the worst for journalists imprisoned in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh's allies must use all their influence, particularly through sanctions, to put an end to the regime of terror targeting journalists. Silence in the face of such a crime would amount to complicity in killing journalism and all press freedom around the world."
Anne Bocandé
RSF Editorial Director
On March 15, 2018, Saudi security forces raided Turki al-Jasser’s home. The journalist was abducted and taken to an unknown detention facility, and his electronic devices were seized. He was then transferred to the high-security Al-Hayer prison on the outskirts of Riyadh. His conditions of detention were so opaque that several media outlets and international organizations, including RSF, announced his presumed death under torture in November 2018.
A little over six months after Turki al-Jasser's arrest, the international community finally realized the danger facing Saudi journalists: on October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Türkiye.
According to RSF, 18 journalists are currently behind bars in Saudi Arabia, which ranks 162nd out of 180 countries in the 2025 RSF World Press Freedom Index.
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REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS / REPORTERS SANS FRONTIÈRES (RSF)
Peter Jones
Press/Communications Officer, Washington, DC Bureau
pjones@rsf.org
(202) 813-9497, ext 3
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