An Egyptian national named Ahmed Mohamed Omar has been sentenced to 19 years in prison in Saudi Arabia for a tweet he posted years ago criticizing Turki Al-Sheikh, a powerful figure in Saudi Arabia’s ruling elite.
According to well-confirmed sources, Omar’s ordeal began in 2019 when he expressed frustration on Twitter about Al-Sheikh’s positions regarding the Egyptian Soccer club, Al-Ahly Club. Little did he know that this seemingly innocuous sports-related criticism would dramatically alter his life.
The consequences of his tweet didn’t materialize immediately. It wasn’t until 2021, when Omar arrived in Saudi Arabia to work as an engraver, that his past social media activity came back to haunt him. After nine months in the country, during which he reportedly broke no laws, Saudi police detained him and took him to an undisclosed location without informing his roommates of the charges against him.
For a year and a half, Omar’s family had no information about his detention conditions or the charges he faced. Eventually, security services permitted him a brief five-minute phone call from Qassim Prison. Reports indicate that his family was unable to hire an attorney to represent him, and he was not allowed to defend himself before receiving what sources describe as an “unjust and unfair” ruling earlier this year.
This case comes at a time when Al-Sheikh’s influence has been expanding beyond Saudi Arabia’s entertainment sector and into the world of international boxing. As the head of Saudi Arabia’s Entertainment Authority and a close advisor to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Al-Sheikh has recently partnered with UFC’s Dana White to create TKO Boxing, a new venture that has already generated controversy in the boxing world.
According to reports, the TKO Boxing model will implement a structured pay scale for boxers, starting at $20,000 for 10-round bouts by unranked boxers and increasing to $750,000 for championship defenses. While this model might benefit younger, unproven boxers, it has faced criticism from established boxing stars accustomed to much larger purses.
In response to a Boxing Scene article detailing these pay structures, Al-Sheikh claimed the reporting was “factually inaccurate,” though he didn’t specify which aspects were incorrect.
The TKO venture, not expected to launch until 2026, reportedly plans to bind boxers to three-year exclusive contracts and will guarantee bout opportunities every five months. The model includes provisions for increased earnings for main event boxers on pay-per-view cards and for appearances at third-party events.
Sources claim that Omar’s case is not isolated. They point to other critics of Al-Sheikh who have faced detention, including Saudi social media user Omar Napoli, who was reportedly detained four years ago after publishing critical tweets.
These cases underscore concerns about the power wielded by high-ranking Saudi officials and the consequences faced by those who criticize them, even for seemingly minor comments related to sports on social media platforms.
As Al-Sheikh’s influence in international sports continues to grow, Omar’s case serves as a sobering reminder of the potential real-world consequences of social media criticism in certain jurisdictions—where a single tweet can lead to decades behind bars.
