Saudi Arabia Lifts Travel Ban on US Citizen Detained Over Critical Social Media Posts

Saad Ibrahim Almadi, a US citizen of Saudi origin, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2022 for critical social media posts.

Saudi Arabia has lifted a travel ban on a US citizen who expressed criticism of the kingdom on social media platforms, his family announced Wednesday, coinciding with President Donald Trump's welcome of the Saudi crown prince.

Saad Ibrahim Almadi, who holds US citizenship but is of Saudi origin, was detained during a visit to his homeland in 2021 after posting tweets that referenced corruption issues and the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a dissident who was strangled and dismembered inside a Saudi consulate.

In 2022, Almadi received a 16-year prison sentence partly based on charges of destabilizing the kingdom. Following appeals from the Biden administration, he was released a year later but remained under a travel restriction that prevented him from leaving Saudi Arabia.

According to family members, Saudi authorities have now removed the travel ban, allowing Almadi to return to the United States.

"This day would not have been possible without President Donald Trump and the tireless efforts of his administration," the family stated in their release.

"We hope the support and care we received will continue for those still held hostage in Saudi Arabia and in other parts of the world."

On Tuesday, Trump hosted Saudi Arabia's crown prince and de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, with full diplomatic honors. US intelligence agencies had previously concluded that the crown prince ordered Khashoggi's killing, who was a US resident and contributor to The Washington Post.

Trump defended the crown prince during the visit, claiming he "knew nothing" about the murder and that "things happen." The former president also rebuked a journalist who he felt embarrassed the Saudi prince by questioning him about the incident.

Crown Prince Mohammed, who pledged to make a $1 trillion investment in the United States, described Khashoggi's murder as "painful" and a "huge mistake."

During Trump's previous term in office, then-Vice President Mike Pence publicly called on Saudi Arabia to release Raif Badawi, a human rights activist who served a 10-year prison sentence and endured 50 public lashes for his blog posts.

While Badawi has completed his sentence, he remains under a travel ban preventing him from leaving Saudi Arabia.