Saudi Arabia to punish online satire 'mocking public order' Published duration 4 September 2018

image copyright AFP image caption Saudi Arabia's anti-cybercrime law has been used to prosecute critics of the government

Saudi prosecutors say they will punish satire on social media that "mocks, provokes or disrupts public order, religious values and public morals".

Anyone producing or distributing such material could face up to five years in prison and an $800,000 (£623,000) fine.

Prosecutors have in the past used the Gulf kingdom's anti-cybercrime law to prosecute critics of the government.

But the latest announcement emphasises that satire can now also get social media users in serious trouble.

In the past year, the Saudi authorities carried out an apparent crackdown on dissent that has reportedly seen dozens of women's rights activists, human rights defenders, influential Islamist clerics and intellectuals detained.

image copyright Facebook/@SalmanAlodah image caption Islamist cleric Salman al-Odah was arrested in September 2017

On Tuesday, Saudi activists and Mr Odah's family reported that prosecutors were seeking the death penalty at his trial at a terrorism tribunal in Riyadh.

The 61-year-old - who was arrested last September after posting a tweet endorsing warmer relations with Qatar - is accused of "seeking to spread sedition" and "incitement against the rulers", according to London-based rights group ALQST.

There was no immediate confirmation from the authorities, but the pro-government newspaper Okaz and other Saudi media also reported on the case.