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The Kingdom has permitted US citizen Saad Almadi to return home to Florida, five months ahead of the scheduled lifting of travel bans and a day after the kingdom's leader and head of government met the former US president at the White House.

Legal Case Background

Almadi, seventy-five, was given 19 years of imprisonment in the kingdom in 2021 after he posted 14 tweets critical of the Riyadh government. After 24 months, the charges were reduced to so-called "cyber crimes" and he was given a 30-year ban on leaving Saudi Arabia.

"Our family rejoices that, after four long years, our father, Saad Almadi, is at last on his way home to the United States!"

The declaration that Almadi, a dual citizen and former engineering professional who had lived in the US since the 1970s, would be allowed to depart the country came after the US president gave an address promoting US-Saudi ties, including arms sales and investment deals.

Diplomatic Acknowledgments

"This day would not have been possible without President Donald Trump and the persistent work of his administration. We are extremely thankful to Dr Sebastian Gorka and the team at the security advisory board, as well as everyone at the foreign affairs office," it added.

The declaration by Almadi's son, Ibrahim Almadi, also expressed gratitude to various charitable groups, including the James Foley Fund and Hostages America, and House speaker Mike Johnson for backing the elder Almadi's cause. He later posted on social media that his father was traveling to the US.

Broader Context

Almadi is one of a handful of American people with dual nationality facing travel restrictions from Saudi Arabia following a crackdown on digital criticism. His son has earlier stated that Almadi was coerced to sign papers giving up his US citizenship.

The case against Almadi centered on social media posts in which he was accused of urged Saudi citizens to seek Lebanese citizenship and criticized the kingdom's defenses against Houthi rocket strikes.

More controversially, he expressed approval for the rededication of a street in the US capital after Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist and Washington Post columnist killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

Related Incident

US intelligence reports released by the Biden administration later assessed that the crown prince had authorized of a plan to "capture or kill" Khashoggi.

Asked about the killing, Trump said the crown prince "knew nothing" of Khashoggi's killing. The Saudi crown prince has denied any wrongdoing. He said at the White House that Saudi Arabia "took appropriate measures" to investigate Khashoggi's death, which he called "distressing" and a "major error".

Diplomatic Pressure

US diplomatic efforts to release Almadi and allow him to come back to the US has been increasing since Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia in May. Many appealed to Trump's claim that he is uniquely successful in bringing back US citizens detained overseas.

When questioned by journalists in May about the case, Trump said he wasn't aware about it but promised to take a look. A few weeks later, one of his security advisors, Gorka, met the son at the White House.

"President Trump is the master negotiator and he enjoys working with the Saudis and we will secure your father's release," Johnson said.