The Special Penal Court resumed the trial against a man accused of supporting Al-Qaeda and holding views of the Khawarij (a historical group that unjustly declared Muslims as disbelievers) on takfir and jihad. He is also accused of inciting people against the country's Ulema and financing terrorism and terrorist operations. The accused Saudi man rejected the prosecutor general's charges against him. He stressed that he has never considered the government or the rulers to be disbelievers and that he has never considered any Muslim to be an infidel. In reply to a charge of disobeying the ruler, he said that “he never pledged earlier to the ruler, so he hasn't disobeyed the ruler.” Regarding the charge of inciting people against the Kingdom's Ulema, he said: “How could I do this when they are my sheikhs?” He insisted that he never supported Al-Qaeda and knows nothing about the terrorist attack on the Abqaiq oil refinery, which claimed the lives of two security guards. This was the second session in the trial against the man. It was attended by his seven sons and representatives of the Human Rights Commission. Regarding the judge's query as to why his sons have not visited him in prison, he said it was voluntary. “It was my own choice, as I did not want to see them in prison, though the government sought my consent for my children to visit me,” the man said. The judge adjourned the session to a future date in order to allow him time to review the evidence. He also said the time would “give the accused a chance to sit with his children, so they can convince him to allow them to visit him in prison.”
