The sister of Jean Hahlul to Pompeo: Will you remain silent?

Alia al-Hathul, the sister of detained Saudi activist Jane Hahlul, has asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is on a tour of the Persian Gulf, whether to raise the issue of her sister in custody in Saudi Arabia.

Alia wrote an article in the New York Times entitled "My sister is a prisoner in Saudi Arabia. Will Mike Pompeo remain silent?" She said that the foreign minister is visiting Saudi Arabia today and is expected to discuss the files of Iran, Yemen and Syria, and the latest investigation into the killing of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

"But I was struck by the fact that the courageous Saudi women activists in Saudi prisons were not included in the agenda of Pompeo's visit because of their attachment to their rights and dignity."

"Pompeo's indifference is personal to me because one of the arrested women is my sister, Jane Hathall, who worked tirelessly to win Saudi women the right to drive."

Alia, who lives in Brussels, said in detail that her sister was subjected to torture, solitary confinement, beatings, assaults, harassment and threats of rape and murder, stressing that some of the torture sessions involved torture and threats by Saud al-Qahtani, adviser to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

She concluded by saying that she had hoped that this article would be written in Arabic and published in a Saudi newspaper, but the kingdom's newspapers described her sister to Gina as a traitor, fearing that her current article might increase her sister's plight. "But after all these long months of waiting, Lifting the ban on my father and releasing my brave sister. "

It is noteworthy that Jane Al-Hathul is a Saudi journalist who studied in the United States and was known for defending Saudi women's rights. She has been arrested more than once because of her positions.

In 2014, al-Hathul was jailed for more than 70 days after trying to cross the border between the UAE and Saudi Arabia, driving her car. In 2015, she was barred from entering the UAE, and responded that the decision was made at the request of Saudi Arabia.

Last December, the Wall Street Journal reported that Saud al-Qahtani supervised the investigation of Jane Hathall, who was subjected to the most brutal forms of torture, and threatened to rape, kill and dump her in the sewers.