Amnesty International has called for the release of Saudi blogger Raif Badawi after he completed his "unjust" 10-year jail term this week.The 38-year-old, who was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and a decade in prison, was "arbitrarily detained solely for freely expressing his opinions", a statement said on Friday.Badawi, who had advocated an end to religious influence on Saudi public life, received his first beating of 50 lashes but the rest were suspended after international condemnation.
Jailed dissident was sentenced to a 10-year prison term and 1,000 lashes in 2012 for writings that Saudi authorities perceived as promoting liberal values.
Family and activists hope that Raif Badawi will be released soon. However, the well-known blogger is not the only activist behind bars for expressing dissenting views. By Kerstin Knipp