Abd al-Rahman Abdullah al-Bakr al-Khalidi (October 1993) faces deportation at any moment from Bulgaria to his country Saudi Arabia after his asylum application has been rejected.
The European-Saudi Organisation for Human Rights obtained the case papers and reviewed the reasons and justifications for the rejection of the refugee agency in Bulgaria, Al-Bakr’s request for asylum. The agency based the refusal on a report that stated that “the official authorities in Saudi Arabia have taken a number of measures to democratize society,” referring to the municipal elections. Formalities carried out by the Saudi government. The Bulgarian report also considered that “the personal motives referred to by Abd al-Rahman for his desire to live in the Republic of Bulgaria cannot be assessed as humanitarian.”
Abd al-Rahman al-Bakr stated that he was active between 2011 and 2013 on social media to demand the release of detainees, and participated in campaigns, including the “Prisoner Until When” campaign. He pointed out that during that period, a number of his friends were arrested, his house was searched, and electronic devices were confiscated after summoning some of his family members, as the investigation focused on his activities and relations.
After interrogating his family and given the increasing repression and the escalation of arrests, he was forced to leave Saudi Arabia in March 2013 and moved between several countries until he settled in Turkey for about 8 years.
Abdul Rahman indicated that he was active and cooperated with some opponents of the Saudi regime abroad, between 2016-2018. On October 23, 2021, he arrived in Bulgaria to seek asylum in the European Union.
On November 25, 2021, he was placed in Busmantsi detention center by an administrative decision as he suffered severe medical negligence. Although he suffers from heart disease, he was not referred to specialists, nor was he given adequate treatment.
Al-Bakr reported that on February 8 and 9, 2022, the Bulgarian authorities interrogated him outside official working hours and without the presence of his lawyer, and asked him to clarify his travel itinerary, and the nature of his work with the opposition, and the personalities he works with. In another investigative session on May 12, 2022, investigators in Bulgaria provided him with information that showed that they had obtained it as a result of a previous summons to his family by the Presidency of State Security, which raised fears of coordination between the Bulgarian authorities responsible for asylum applications and the Saudi intelligence.
According to Abdul Rahman, on February 9, 2022, he was informed by the Bulgarian official authorities that Bulgaria refused to accept any refugees except for refugees from Syria and Afghanistan, and he might be deported.
ESOHR asserts that Bulgaria violates international laws in the event of the forcible return of Abdul Rahman al-Bakr to Saudi Arabia. The organization notes that Bulgaria has been a party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment since 1986. Article 3 of the Convention states that “No state party shall expel, return (“refouler”) a person or To extradite him to another country if it has genuine reasons to believe that he would be in danger of being subjected to torture. The organization stresses that Saudi Arabia is a country that systematically practices torture, especially on individuals who express their opinion that is contrary to or critical of the government. Therefore, returning al-Bakr to Saudi Arabia, if it takes place, is a flagrant violation of international law and Bulgaria's obligations.
The organization points out that the arguments used by the Bulgarian authorities to reject the request of Abdul Rahman al-Bakr show Bulgaria’s involvement in the violations, as Saudi Arabia is a country far from democracy, and the figures indicate severe repression that reaches the point of issuing death sentences against activists and opponents, in addition to being Violence and torture are practiced in prisons.
The organization also notes that many countries have previously forcibly deported Saudi citizens, as their fate was enforced disappearance, unfair trials, and arbitrary sentences, including Amjad Al-Faraj, who was returned by the Sultanate of Oman, and human rights defender Muhammad Al-Otaibi, who was returned by Qatar, and Osama Al-Hasani, who was returned Morocco is forced.