“Safeguarding the rights of others is the most noble and beautiful end of a human being.” (Khalil Gibran)
On 7 October, it will be five years since the takeover of Newcastle United by the Saudi Public Investment Fund and since then NE Bylines has been regularly documenting what life is like in that Middle Eastern kingdom and what has happened there since that takeover in October 2021. There are some who would claim that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a place where human rights are not respected and that the regime is a murderous regime, which starts illegal wars and responsible for many human rights abuses. But is all that really true? Let’s see what has been happening and look at the hard evidence. How has Saudi Arabia been reported in recent weeks?
Parts I-36 of this survey have covered the period from 7 October 2021 to the end of August this year. So, what has been happening regarding Saudi Arabia in September 2026?
Advisory Report
On 3 September ALQST published an advisory report for those considering travelling to Saudi Arabia. The advisory documents the consistent pattern of serious human rights abuses and repression witnessed in Saudi Arabia for many years.
The advisory also argues that this oppression has recently been extended to foreign visitors as well. It is noted that “over the past decade, the authorities have made sweeping waves of arbitrary arrests and imposed lengthy prison sentences on citizens and residents for peacefully expressing their opinions, both on- and offline”.
Numerous examples of foreign individuals who have also faced arrest and punishment for exercising the right to free speech are highlighted in the advisory. These include “social media posts published even before entering the kingdom. Once arrested, foreigners often face further violations of their rights within Saudi Arabia’s repressive criminal justice and prison systems”.
It is also noted that one of the highest rates of executions in the world I s found in Saudi Arabia. This meant that as many as 345 were executed in 2024 and even more – 356 – in 2025. A high percentage of these executions were said to be “in violation of international law, for non-lethal drug offences committed by foreign nationals”.
Alleged abduction
It was reported on 8 September that a British woman had spoken out for the first time about the alleged abduction, torture and coercion of her husband at the hands of Saudi authorities. She was driven to do this after nine years of what was described as “failed” quiet diplomacy.
Rami Naimi, who is a businessman, was first abducted in Dubai in 2017 when returning home from a trip to Australia with his father. He was then tortured, before being released the following year.
Rami Naimi is a father of three, and importantly is the son of a former Saudi oil minister and head of the state oil company Aramco Ali Al-Naimi. He was detained again in 2022 and held for two years and then in 2025 following a secret trial, he was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment.
Migrant workers in Aramco
The human rights organisation FairSquare produced a report that uncovered that migrant workers were suffering serious abuse in Saudi Aramco’s supply chain. Aramco is the world’s largest oil company and aso Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, but despite its huge influence and, FairSquare investigations “revealed that workers in its vast supply chain are exposed to extreme heat, subject to excessive working hours, forced to reside in slum housing, and rarely receive compensation following fatalities and injuries”.
Ongoing crimes against civilians
Finally, it was reported on 29 September that The Eye of Humanity Center for Rights and Development had condemned the “ongoing crimes committed by the criminal Saudi regime against civilians and civilian objects in Taiz province”. The actions of the Saudi regime were described as a “dangerous escalation targeting residents’ lives, property, and facilities providing essential services to the community”.
The human rights organisation issued a statement describing how Saudi aircraft had “targeted a civilian home in Al-Ma’afir district, resulting in the martyrdom of three women and an elderly man and the injury of three other citizens – a horrific crime that struck a civilian family inside its home without any fault”.
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