Rights group says Saudi journalist freed

DUBAI, Apr 21 (Reuters) A Saudi journalist was freed after he had been detained for criticising conservative Islamists, an international media watchdog said.

Rabah al-Quwai, who writes for the daily Shams and some Saudi-run Web sites, was detained in the northern city of Hail, and held for 13 days. Quwai was freed on Saturday, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in a statement received by Reuters late yesterday.

''Quwai ... said he was compelled to sign a statement saying that he had denigrated Islamic beliefs in his writing, that he was not a true Muslim and that he would defend Islamic values in his future work,'' the US-based group said in a statement.

''Had he not signed the statement, Quwai said, he would have faced a charge of riddah - a renunciation of Islam - which is punishable by death.'' Quwai was released after appearing before the Hail provincial governor but was barred from leaving the country, the statement said.

Saudi officials were not immediately available to comment.

Hail police had summoned Quwai on April 3 on the pretext he had to fill out paperwork related to threats the journalist had reported receiving last year. Quwai said he was later interrogated twice, each time for six hours, the statement said.

Quwai's lawyer was also denied access to his files and was not allowed to meet him.

In his articles, Quwai warned religious extremism could lead to a September. 11, 2001-style attack in Riyadh and criticised the strict religious line of Wahhabism, Saudi's rigid form of Sunni Islam.

The articles in question had appeared on the Internet three years ago, CPJ said Quwai had told the group.

''While we're glad that our colleague has been freed, the coercive circumstances of his release are alarming,'' executive director of CPJ, Ann Cooper, said in the statement.

''Saudi officials must allow him to continue his work without further persecution.'' Saudi Arabia detained an Islamist activist for about 10 days last month after he criticised a cabinet minister in an Internet article.

King Abdullah, who has said he supports cautious reforms, pardoned some jailed activists when he came to power in August.

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