A US citizen jailed in Saudi Arabia is being punished for "mild" Twitter posts on topics including the war in Yemen and the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, his son told AFP on Wednesday.
Saad Ibrahim Almadi, a 72-year-old of Saudi origin, was this month sentenced to 16 years in prison, the latest in a spate of what human rights groups describe as draconian sentences for social media criticism of the government.
The Washington Post, too, late on Monday also reported the matter.
The news comes at a time when the Biden administration is looking to reevaluate its relationship with Saudi Arabia, after OPEC+ oil producers announced oil production cuts over US objections.
Almadi was detained on arrival in Saudi Arabia in November last year for what was meant to be a two-week trip, said his son Ibrahim, who went public with the case this week, criticizing US officials for failing to do more to secure his release.
The State Department said on Tuesday it had "consistently and intensively raised our concerns regarding the case at senior levels of the Saudi government," and that "exercising freedom of expression should never be criminalized."
Ibrahim on Wednesday shared with AFP a list of Twitter posts he said had been used in evidence against his father -- information he said had been confirmed by the State Department.
They include posts on taxes as well as controversial demolition work in Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, and the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
One post questions why Saudi Arabia is unable to prevent attacks by Houthi rebels in war-wracked Yemen, where the kingdom heads a military coalition in support of the internationally recognized government.
Another refers to the "sacrifice" of Khashoggi, whose killing by Saudi agents in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate sparked global outrage.
Saudi officials also found an unflattering caricature of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, on Almadi's phone, Ibrahim said.
Almadi was charged in part with supporting and funding terrorism and trying to destabilize the kingdom, he said.
Ibrahim accused the State Department of having "mishandled" his father's case, including by not sending a representative to the October 3 sentencing.
Ibrahim also expressed concern for his father's health.
"They prevent him from sleeping. They make him stand up. He's 72 years old and his health condition is just decreasing," Ibrahim said by phone from the United States, where he lives.
"He had back problems. He needs surgery done as soon as possible in his back. I already have an appointment for him here."
Almadi received a 16-year travel ban on top of his jail sentence.
Saudi officials have not commented on Almadi's case or on other recent verdicts against people who criticized the government on social media.