Saudi women’s rights activist sentenced to nearly six years in prison

Loujain al-Hathloul pushed for the right to drive.Picture: Loujain al-Hathloul via AP, File

One of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent women’s rights activists has been sentenced to nearly six years in prison under a vague and broadly-worded counterterrorism law, according to state-linked media.

Loujain al-Hathloul has already been in pre-trial detention and has endured several stretches of solitary confinement. Her continued imprisonment is likely to be a point of contention in relations between the kingdom and the incoming presidency of US President-elect Joe Biden, whose inauguration takes place in January – around two months before what is now expected to be Ms al-Hathloul’s release date.