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Saudi Arabia tries Palestinians accused of Hamas ties

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Saudi arabian flag in the wind against clear sky, Al Madinah Province, Yanbu, Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Arabian flag flies in the wind against clear sky in the Red Sea port of Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, Dec. 26, 2019 . — Eric Lafforgue/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images

Dozens of Palestinians in Saudi Arabia are being tried before Riyadh’s special terrorism court for their perceived links to the Hamas movement in Gaza, according to press reports. 

Of the 68 defendants whose trials began Sunday, most were Palestinians arrested in April 2019, along with some Jordanians, according to the reports. 

A wave of arrests targeting Palestinian students, academics and businessmen in Saudi Arabia began in February 2019. Amnesty International says that those detained have since been held without charges or access to legal representation, and that some were subjected to solitary confinement. 

The Saudi government has not officially commented on the arrests or trials.

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