RIYADH: The case of the Kohail brothers, one who is on death row and the other facing the death penalty, has taken a new turn after Saudi police called the father of the two and asked him to appear before a Jeddah court on Jan. 4 on charges of going to the press and criticizing government agencies, according to a member of the family who did not want to be named.
“The Jeddah police have asked Ali to appear before court,” said the source, adding that the case has been further compounded since the head of the family was summoned to court.
The family claims that they have yet to be officially told the charges the father faces.
According to a CBC News report, the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that officials from both sides are discussing the fate of the 23-year-old Mohamed Kohail, who was accused along with his 17-year-old brother Sultan of killing a Syrian student nearly two years ago in a school brawl. Mohamed has already been handed down death penalty, while the fate of Sultan hangs in balance.
“A senior Canadian official who visited the Kingdom early this month met the Kohail family and had talks with senior Saudi officials, including the minister of justice,” said the source.
According to the report, Deepak Obhrai, parliamentary secretary to the Canadian minister of foreign affairs, has spoken to several senior Saudi officials about the situation during his trip to the Kingdom.
The report said that the Canadian officials were attempting to stop the execution order against Mohamed. An appeal against the sentence was unsuccessful.
Among Saudi officials, Obhrai met with were officials from Foreign Ministry and chairman of the Riyadh-based Human Rights Commission.
The report said the Canadian diplomats based in Riyadh were now fully engrossed in the case, as are senior officials in Ottawa. Also, consular officials have been actively providing assistance and support and remain in regular contact with the Kohail family and their legal counsel.
A diplomatic note has been sent to the Saudi government, said the report. A Saudi appeals court upheld Mohamed’s death sentence in a verbal ruling last month.
Mohamed’s younger brother Sultan was convicted in April of similar charges and sentenced to spend one year in prison and receive 200 lashes. However, the prosecution was not satisfied with the sentence and asked the judge to refer the case to an adult court.
Treating Sultan as an adult would be against the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Saudi Arabia signed in 1997. Under the convention, the age of adulthood is 18 and no person may be put to death for any crime committed under that age.
