Israa al-Ghomgham
Israa al-Ghomgham (إسراء الغمغام; also: Israa al-Ghamgam) is a Saudi Arabian human rights advocate. She is especially known for her documentation of the 2017–18 Qatif unrest.
Israa al-Ghomgham | |
|---|---|
إسراء الغمغام | |
| Born | 1988 or 1989 (age 34–35) |
| Known for | participating in protests and documenting the 2017–18 Qatif unrest in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia; faced sentencing to death as of August 2018; death penalty request dropped on 31 January 2019 |
| Spouse | Moussa al-Hashem |
In September 2018, she risked being sentenced to become the first female human rights defender to be executed, possibly by beheading, in Saudi Arabia following what had been planned as a final hearing to be held on 28 October 2018. On 6 August 2018, the Saudi Arabian prosecutor involved in al-Ghomgham's case recommended that she and her husband be sentenced to death. Saudi activists stated that al-Ghomgham is the first woman to have faced capital punishment for human rights campaigning in Saudi Arabia. On 31 January 2019, the Saudi authorities dropped the prosecutor's request for al-Ghomgham to be sentenced to death. Al-Ghomgham was tried in an unfair trial and in February 2021 was sentenced to an eight-year imprisonment term, as reported by the Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCHR).