KALAMAZOO, MI -- An international human rights organization is working to prevent the execution of a Saudi national who planned to attend Western Michigan University before his arrest.

Reprieve, an organization that represents people charged with the death penalty worldwide, started a petition to stop the imminent beheading of Mujtaba'a al-Sweikat and 13 other Saudis sentenced to death for attending pro-democracy rallies in 2011-12. Campaigns and Digital Officer Georgia O'Brien posted on the Kalamazoo Reddit page Monday morning seeking members of student organizations at WMU.

The petition calls on Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to stop the executions. More than 12,500 signatures were collected, as of 3 p.m. July 17.

WMU Spokeswoman Cheryl Roland said she was made aware of the situation Sunday morning. Al-Sweikat was admitted to WMU in 2013 and planned to study finance, but he was arrested at the airport before entering the United States.

"We were stunned to learn, for the first time (Sunday), of this situation," Roland said in an email. "It is not unusual for an admitted student to opt out of enrolling at the last minute, so we had no idea there was such a troubling reason behind this student's failure to come to campus."

Roland said WMU urged unnamed "critical national political figures with influence" to ask the Saudi government to prevent the executions.

"It's a deeply troubling story, and we're pleased that AFT has reached out to people in our government who may have influence they can use to ask for compassion for this young man and the others involved," Roland said.

According to a July 16 statement from the American Federation of Teachers, al-Sweikat and 13 others were arrested for attending 2011-12 protests against the Saudi Arabian government. He was held in detention in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, since his arrest, and sentenced to death on June 1, 2016.

The AFT learned Saturday that al-Sweikat was moved from detention in Dammam to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where executions by beheading "customarily take place."

According to a statement from Reprieve, al-Sweikat was 17 when he was arrested. He was burnt with cigarettes, tortured to the point that his shoulder was broken and denied medical care, Reprieve says.

Another prisoner, Munir Al-Adam, was born with impaired sight and hearing. In their efforts to extract a "confession" from him, Munir's captors tortured him so that he was rendered completely deaf in one ear.

"This is an extremely worrying move from the increasingly brutal regime in Saudi Arabia," said Director of Reprieve Maya Foa. "President Donald Trump and Theresa May need to tell the new Saudi Crown Prince loudly and clearly that this is an unacceptable red line that should not be crossed."

AFT Michigan President David Hecker also called on President Donald Trump to use his relationship with Saudi leaders to stop the executions.

"President Trump displayed a close relationship with Saudi leaders during his recent trip to the kingdom," Heckler said in the statement. "I urge him to use that relationship to plead with the new Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to halt the executions."

AFT President Randi Weingarten called the sentence an "unthinkable and despicable violation of international law and basic humanity."

"People must have a right to speak and associate freely," Weingarten said. "Should these executions occur, Saudi Arabia should be considered a pariah nation by the world. We implore President Trump, as the standard-bearer for our great nation, to do everything in his power to stop the atrocities that may otherwise take place in Saudi Arabia."