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'The '''Mabahith''' ({{lang-ar|المباحث العامة}}, {{transl|ar|DIN-31635|''al-Mabāḥiṯ al-ʿĀmmah''}}, '''General Investigation Directorate'''), also spelled ''Mabaheth'', is the "[[secret police]]" agency of the [[Ministry of Interior (Saudi Arabia)|Ministry of Interior]] in [[Saudi Arabia]], and deals with domestic security and counter-intelligence. ==Role== According to [[Human Rights Watch]], the Mabahith "monitors suspected political opponents and others, targets individuals for arrest, and interrogates detainees. Mabahith agents operate with impunity and have been responsible for a wide range of human rights abuses, including [[arbitrary arrest and detention|arbitrary arrest]], incommunicado detention, and [[torture]]"<ref name="HRW_Mabahith_defn" /> including [[waterboarding]], [[denailing]], [[flagellation]] and [[Strike (attack)|beatings]], amongst other forms of severe abuse. Members of the Mabahith were allegedly responsible for the torture of Western detainees arrested during a car bombing campaign which started in 2000. Two members in particular, [[Khalid al-Saleh]] and [[Ibrahim al-Dali]], were named by [[William Sampson (author)|William Sampson]] in his court action against the Saudi government.{{cn|date=January 2016}} Sampson and others lost their case in the [[UK High Court]] when the Saudis used the [[State Immunity Act 1978]] as their defence. ==Prisons== ===Al-Ha'ir Prison=== [[Al-Haa'ir Prison]] is a Mabahith-affiliated prison.<ref name="ANHRI_19aug2012alHair" /> ===`Ulaysha Prison=== Mabahith runs the [[`Ulaysha Prison]] in [[Riyadh]],<ref name="HRW_Mabahith_Umma" /> where it holds prisoners under [[arbitrary arrest and detention|arbitrary detention]]. The [[United Nations]] [[Working Group on Arbitrary Detention]] has objected to arbitrary detention at Mabahith's prison.<ref name="UNWorkGroup_Qaid2007" /><ref name="UNWorkGroup_Samara2008" /> {{As of|2011|06}}, arbitrarily detained prisoners apparently include five founding members of a would-be political party, the [[Umma Islamic Party]],<ref name="HRW_Mabahith_Umma" /> and [[Khaled al-Johani]], who publicly protested in [[Riyadh]] on the 11 March "Day of Rage" during the [[2011 Saudi Arabian protests]].<ref name="AOL_alJohani" /><ref name="HRW_alJohani" /> ==See also== * [[Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah]] – Saudi Arabian external security agency ==References== {{reflist|refs= <ref name="HRW_Mabahith_defn">[https://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/mena/saudi/ Human Rights in Saudi Arabia: A Deafening Silence (Human Rights Watch Backgrounder, December 2001)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> <ref name="ANHRI_19aug2012alHair">{{cite web| last =| first =| authorlink =| coauthors =| title = Saudi Arabia: Dispensing a Peaceful Demonstration after Assaulting Prisoner's Wife and Four of Her Children due to A video Segment| work =| publisher =[[Arabic Network for Human Rights Information|ANHRI]] | date =2012-08-28| url =http://www.anhri.net/en/?p=9263 |format =| doi =| accessdate =2012-08-31 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/6AKkKR5Tb |archivedate=2012-08-31 |deadurl=no }}</ref> <ref name="HRW_Mabahith_Umma">{{cite web| last =Wilcke| first =Christopher| authorlink =| coauthors =| title =Secret Police Crackdown on Founders of First Political Party| work =| publisher =[[Human Rights Watch]]| date =2011-02-19| url =https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/02/19/saudi-arabia-free-political-activists |format =| doi =| accessdate =2011-06-09 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5zJzUetCF|archivedate=2011-06-09 |deadurl=no }} </ref> <ref name="UNWorkGroup_Qaid2007">{{cite web| last =| first =| authorlink =| coauthors =| title =Saudi Arabia: Opinion on the arbitrary detention of Mr. Faiz bin Abdelmohsen Al Qaid | work =| publisher =[[Alkarama|Alkarama for Human Rights]]| date =2007-07-02| url =http://www.alkarama.org/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=34:saudi-arabia-opinion-on-the-arbitrary-detention-of-mr-faiz-bin-abdelmohsen-al-qaid&catid=33:communiqu&Itemid=180 |format =| doi =| accessdate =2011-06-09 |archiveurl= http://www.webcitation.org/5zK6sdhCP|archivedate=2011-06-09 |deadurl=no }} </ref> <ref name="UNWorkGroup_Samara2008">{{cite web| last =| first =| authorlink =| coauthors =| title =Saudi Arabia: The Working Group of the United Nations describes the detention of Abdel Rahman Samara as arbitrary| work =| publisher =[[Alkarama|Alkarama for Human Rights]]| date =2009-04-21| url =http://www.alkarama.org/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=222:saudi-arabia-the-working-group-of-the-united-nations-describes-the-detention-of-abdel-rahman-samara-as-arbitrary-&catid=33:communiqu&Itemid=180 |format =| doi =| accessdate =2011-06-09 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5zK6fz0Ob |archivedate=2011-06-09 |deadurl=no }} </ref> <ref name="AOL_alJohani">{{cite news | first=Dana | last=Kennedy | pages= | language =| title=Imprisoned Father of Autistic Boy Called "the Bravest Man in Saudi Arabia" | date=2011-04-08 | publisher=[[AOL|AOL News]] | url= http://www.aolnews.com/2011/04/08/khaled-al-johani-the-bravest-man-in-saudi-arabia |accessdate=2011-06-06 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5zFLXahyl |archivedate=2011-06-06 |deadurl=no }} </ref> <ref name="HRW_alJohani">{{cite web| last =| first =| authorlink =| coauthors =| title =EU, US Leaders Should Publicly Condemn Human Rights Violations| work =| publisher =[[Human Rights Watch]]| date =2011-04-20| url =https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2011/04/20/saudi-arabia-dissident-writer-arrested |format =| doi =| accessdate =2011-06-07 |archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5zGnVjbxy |archivedate=2011-06-07 |deadurl=no }} </ref> }} ==External links== * [http://www.moi.gov.sa/wps/portal/investigationdepartment Official website] {{2011–2012 Saudi Arabian protests}} {{Saudi Arabia topics}} {{Saudi security forces}} [[Category:Government of Saudi Arabia]] [[Category:Saudi intelligence agencies]] [[Category:2011–12 Saudi Arabian protests]] [[Category:Organizations of the Arab Spring]] {{SaudiArabia-stub}} {{law-enforcement-stub}}'