Ruling bans Florida retiree from leaving Saudi Arabia until 2026 over critical social media posts

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MIAMI (AP) — A Florida retiree has been convicted of cyber crimes and blocked from leaving Saudi Arabia until next year over social media posts critical of the kingdom’s crown prince, according to the man’s son.

Saad Almadi, 75, was found guilty of distributing online content that undermines public order, according to a Sept. 14 ruling provided by his son. The conviction, which has not been previously reported, carries a three-year sentence but spares Almadi additional prison time after he spent more than a year behind bars following his arrest in 2021.

Instead, it blocks Almadi from leaving the kingdom until March. The Saudi government, which did not respond to a request for comment, doesn’t recognize dual citizenship and regularly rejects criticism of its actions, saying they are part of a multiyear crackdown on corruption, terrorism and other security threats.

The ruling comes after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman gave a lavish welcome to President Donald Trump during a May trip to Saudi Arabia, a key strategic partner of the United States. It built on efforts to reengage with the kingdom after the crown prince's reputation was badly damaged by a U.S. intelligence determination that he had likely ordered the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Prince Mohammed denies his involvement.

Almadi’s son, Ibrahim Almadi, says he believes the sentence is aimed at prompting his family — and those of a handful of other American citizens facing similar exit bans — to stay silent and not get in the way of the crown prince's diplomatic comeback.

“The government keeps changing its mind, and there's no consequences every time it does,” he said in an interview.

A retired project manager who immigrated to the U.S. in the 1970s, the elder Almadi was arrested upon his arrival in Saudi Arabia for what was supposed to be a short trip to see family. Officials confronted him with tweets he had posted over the past several years, including one about Khashoggi’s killing and another on the crown prince’s consolidation of power, his family says.

Almadi was quickly sentenced to more than 19 years in prison on terrorism-related charges stemming from the tweets. Saudi Arabia freed him after more than a year and dropped the terrorism charges but imposed an exit ban that keeps him from returning to his home in Boca Raton, near Miami.

The Associated Press reported in January that Saudi officials were pressuring the elder Almadi to renounce his American citizenship.

Trump, who has made freeing Americans held by foreign adversaries a top priority, has remained mostly silent. When asked by a reporter in May about the case, he said he didn't know about it but promised to take a look. A few weeks later, one of his national security aides, Sebastian Gorka, met with the younger Almadi at the White House.

The U.S. State Department said it is monitoring the elder Almadi's case, providing him with appropriate consular services and has been in contact with his family, but it declined to provide further comment, citing privacy considerations. The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Trump, since returning to the White House, has intensified an effort started during the Biden administration to bury any criticism of the Saudi royals over allegations of their involvement in Khashoggi's killing inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

During his visit to Riyadh in May, Trump described Prince Mohammed as an “incredible man” and “my friend.” Trump's family has extensive business dealings with the world's top oil exporter, which have only deepened since voters returned him to the White House.

In April, the Trump Organization struck a deal with a developer close to the Saudi royal family, London-based Dar Global, to build a Trump-branded beachside villa and 18-hole golf course in neighboring Qatar. The Trump Organization also is partnering with the firm in a luxury high-rise apartment building in the coastal city of Jeddah, a project that was announced last December.

A private equity firm controlled by Trump’s son-in-law and former White House adviser Jared Kushner received a $2 billion investment from the sovereign wealth fund controlled by the crown prince.

Abdullah Alaoudh, a senior director at the Middle East Democracy Center, a Washington-based human rights group, is tracking cases of Americans under exit bans in Saudi Arabia. He said he knew of four others — an American citizen, two dual U.S.-Saudi nationals and a U.S. green-card holder — facing a similar plight to Almadi's.

Saudi Arabia is the largest oil producer in the Middle East. It's also a key player in regional conflicts involving Iran and Yemen as well as the chief prize in U.S. efforts to get Arab states to normalize relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords — a hallmark foreign policy achievement during Trump’s first term.