Sentenced to death – for a Facebook comment

 

TT

 

Published 03.33

 

Saudi Arabia's National Day is celebrated in the capital, Riyadh, in September. Photo: Baraa Anwer/AP/TT

A 24-year-old migrant worker from Sri Lanka has been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia for an allegedly blasphemous Facebook comment.

The man was arrested in July following an exchange on Facebook, where he wrote a comment that—according to the BBC—was perceived as an insult to the Prophet Muhammad.

A Saudi court initially sentenced him to five years in prison and a fine amounting to millions. Following an appeal, the case was transferred to the country's Sharia court, where the sentence was changed to death.

"I plead for mercy for the wrongs my son has committed. Please forgive him and let him come home," the man's mother told the BBC.

The case has sent shockwaves through Sri Lanka. Hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankans live and work in Saudi Arabia, and the remittances sent home are vital to the island nation's economy.