One of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent political activists and graduate of the University of British Columbia was released from prison Wednesday, her family said, after serving nearly three years on charges that have sparked an international uproar over the kingdom’s human rights record.
Loujain al-Hathloul, who pushed to end a ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia, was sentenced to almost six years in prison last December under a broad counterterrorism law. Held for 1001 days, with stints in pre-trial detention and solitary confinement, she was accused of crimes such as agitating for change and pursuing a foreign agenda—charges that rights groups describe as politically motivated.
