EGP edges lower against USD in early Monday trade    Egypt delivers over 30 million health services through public hospitals in H1 2025    Egypt joins Geneva negotiations on Global Plastics Treaty, calls for urgent agreement    Madinet Masr in talks for three land plots in Riyadh as part of Saudi expansion    Egypt's PM tells Palestinian PM that Rafah crossing is working 24/7 for aid    Egypt, Japan discuss economic ties, preparations for TICAD conference    Real Estate Developers urge flexible land pricing, streamlined licensing, and dollar-based transactions    Escalation in Gaza, West Bank as Israeli strikes continue amid mounting international criticism    Egypt recovers collection of ancient artefacts from Netherlands    Egypt, UNDP discuss outcomes of joint projects, future environmental cooperation    Egypt harvests 315,000 cubic metres of rainwater in Sinai as part of flash flood protection measures    After Putin summit, Trump says peace deal is best way to end Ukraine war    Egypt's Supreme Energy Council reviews power supply plans for 14 industrial projects    Jordan condemns Israeli PM remarks on 'Greater Israel'    Egypt, Namibia explore closer pharmaceutical cooperation    Fitch Ratings: ASEAN Islamic finance set to surpass $1t by 2026-end    Renowned Egyptian novelist Sonallah Ibrahim dies at 88    Egyptian, Ugandan Presidents open business forum to boost trade    Al-Sisi says any party thinking Egypt will neglect water rights is 'completely mistaken'    Egypt's Sisi warns against unilateral Nile measures, reaffirms Egypt's water security stance    Egypt's Sisi, Uganda's Museveni discuss boosting ties    Egypt, Huawei explore healthcare digital transformation cooperation    Egypt's Sisi, Sudan's Idris discuss strategic ties, stability    Egypt's govt. issues licensing controls for used cooking oil activities    Egypt to inaugurate Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November    Egypt's Sisi: Egypt is gateway for aid to Gaza, not displacement    Greco-Roman rock-cut tombs unearthed in Egypt's Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Saudi court rejects death sentence for TV psychic
Published in The Egyptian Gazette on 13 - 11 - 2010

RIYADH - Saudi Arabia's Supreme Court has refused to ratify the death sentence of a Lebanese psychic convicted of practicing witchcraft in a case that has outraged international human rights groups.
A three-judge panel said in its ruling Thursday that there was not enough evidence that Ali Sibat's actions harmed others. The judges ordered the case to be retried in a Madinah court and recommended that the sentence be commuted and that Sibat be deported.
The charges in Sibat's case seem to centre on a call-in talk show he hosted on a Lebanese satellite TV station where he would tell fortunes and give advice. His supporters point out that the show was aired from Lebanon, not Saudi Arabia.
He was arrested in May 2008 by the Saudi religious police during a pilgrimage to the holy city of Madinah and sentenced to death in November 2009.
In Lebanon, Sibat's wife, Samira Rahmoon, welcomed the Supreme Court's decision but said she won't rest until Sibat is back home with her and their five children.
‘Of course I was very happy. A house without a man is worth nothing; we are borrowing money every month just to get bread to eat,' she said. ‘But I am still scared. Unless I see him at Beirut airport with my own eyes I will always be scared for him.'
The Saudi justice system, which is based on Islamic law, does not clearly define the charge of witchcraft.
Sibat is one of scores of people reported arrested every year in the kingdom for practicing sorcery, witchcraft, black magic and fortunetelling. The deeply religious authorities in Saudi Arabia consider these practices polytheism.
According to Amnesty International, the last known execution on a witchcraft conviction was the 2007 beheading of an Egyptian pharmacist, Mustafa Ibrahim, who was found guilty of casting spells in an attempt to separate a married couple.
The charges are often vague ��" covering anything from fortunetelling to astrology to making charms and talismans believed to bring love, health or pregnancy. Saudi judges cite Quranic verses forbidding witchcraft, but such practices remain popular as a folk tradition.
In January, an appeals court in Makkah agreed to review Sibat's death sentence, but in March another set of judges in Madinah upheld the sentence, saying he practiced sorcery publicly on a TV show and that made him an infidel.
Sibat's Lebanese lawyer, May Al Khansa, said she believed the Saudi Supreme Court's decision meant he will soon be released.
‘There is no reason for a retrial; either he's guilty and they have evidence, or they don't,' she said.
‘The fact that the court rejected the death sentence means that he's innocent and the next step is closing the case and deporting him to Lebanon.'
Amnesty International says a Sudanese man, Abdul-Hamid Al Fakki, has also been convicted of sorcery and is still believed to be at risk of execution.


Clic here to read the story from its source.