US citizen jailed in Saudi Arabia over critical tweets is allowed to return to Florida

A US and Saudi citizen who was jailed in Riyadh over tweets that were critical of the Saudi government has been allowed to return home to Florida.

Saad Ibrahim Almadi’s son said that the return of the 75-year-old retired engineer was made possible by President Donald Trump and his administration. The announcement comes one day after Trump hosted Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.

Mr Almadi was arrested in 2021 upon arriving in Riyadh to visit family and later found guilty of trying to destabilise the kingdom and supporting and funding terrorism.

After being sentenced to 19 years in prison, he was released early in 2023 but barred from leaving Saudi Arabia.

Mr Almadi’s family said in a statement posted on X on Wednesday that they are overjoyed that their “horrific” four-year ordeal has come to an end.

His son, Ibrahim, and the Almadi family also thanked the Trump administration’s “tireless efforts”, as well as the National Security Council and US State Department for safeguarding Mr Almadi’s return.

“This case has always been about free speech, and the courageous voices of [journalists] Josh Rogin and Steven Nelson ensured our father’s story was heard around the world,” the family said, singling out journalists for The Washington Post and The New York Post.

The family also thanked those who stood by them over the past four years: “We hope the support and care we received will continue for those still held hostage in Saudi Arabia and in other parts of the world.”

According to The New York Post, Almadi’s family said he was airborne from Riyadh as of 12:15 ET on Wednesday, just minutes after Trump and the crown prince – known by his initials MBS – appeared onstage together at an investment forum in Washington DC.

Early last month, Mr Almadi’s son posted a photo alongside Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to the president on national security, on X. He wrote that the US entry of MBS – Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler – this week was “contingent upon the safe return” of his father.

Mr Almadi was arrested in November 2021 upon arriving in Riyadh to visit family. He was originally sentenced to 16 years but an appeals court increased the term to 19 years.

When he was released in 2023, Mr Almadi’s son told Reuters news agency that charges had been dropped but he still faced the travel ban.

Ibrahim previously told the BBC that the only evidence presented to the court against his father consisted of 14 tweets.

The tweets, seen by BBC News at the time, included criticism of the demolition of old parts of the cities of Mecca and Jeddah, concern over poverty in the kingdom and a reference to the murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

During Trump’s meeting with MBS on Tuesday, the US president came to the defence of his guest, telling reporters that the crown prince “knew nothing” about the 2018 killing of Khashoggi.

Trump’s comments appeared to contradict a US intelligence assessment in 2021 that determined the crown prince had approved the operation that led to Khashoggi’s death at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.