[JURIST] Sabq news [official website], a Saudi government linked news website, reported [Sabq report] on Thursday that King Salman ordered for an investigation and trial of a famous TV host and Muslim Brotherhood scholar. The order was reportedly motivated by an episode of Abdullah al-Modifer’s show that was critical of King Abdullah’s policies, which outlawed Islamic groups. The TV host is also claimed to be banned from continuing his show. According to Sabq, the episode at issue involved an interview with Mohsen al-Awaji who urged for people to forget about King Abdullah and reconcile with Islamists in the country. The episode aired [AP report] last week on a satellite channel and has been removed from all stations within the nation.

Saudi Arabia’s justice system has drawn international criticism for perceived human rights abuses in recent years. In January 2015, a Saudi judge sentenced prominent human rights lawyer Walid Abu al-Khair to an additional five years in jail [JURIST report] after he refused to show remorse for “showing disrespect” to authorities and creating an unauthorized association. In December 2014, a Saudi court ordered [JURIST report] the criminal cases against two women’s rights activists be transferred to a special tribunal for terrorism. The women were arrested for attempting to drive into Saudi Arabia from the UAE. In October a Saudi Court sentenced three lawyers to between five and eight years in prison for criticizing the justice system [JURIST report] on Twitter by accusing authorities of carrying out arbitrary detentions. Earlier that month Amnesty International issued a report claiming that Saudi Arabia persecutes rights activists and silences government critics [JURIST report], especially in the years since the Arab Spring in 2011. Saudi Arabia has also faced sharp criticism for its high number of executions. In September two experts from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights urged Saudi Arabia to implement an immediate moratorium on the death penalty [JURIST report] following an increase in executions, with a significant number of the executions completed by beheading.