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“Stuck in Saudi Arabia” .. Organization: An American citizen released by the authorities cannot leave the Kingdom

(CNN) — Human rights organization Freedom Initiative said an American citizen named Carly Morris, recently released by Saudi authorities, was “still stranded” in the kingdom.

According to the NGO Freedom Initiative, Morris “remains stranded in Saudi Arabia due to the travel ban and the constant threat of her re-arrest”.

CNN Arabic has reached out to Saudi authorities for comment, with no response as of this writing

“The Saudi authorities should immediately lift the travel ban imposed on her and allow her to return to the United States with her daughter,” Bethany Al-Haidari, director of Saudi affairs at the Freedom Initiative, said on Thursday.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the department was aware of reports that the US citizen had been released from detention in Saudi Arabia, but did not say whether she had been allowed to leave the country.

According to the organization, Carly Morris and her daughter were lured to the Kingdom in 2019 by her ex-husband, a Saudi national.

“Although Morris’s daughter had only US citizenship at the time of departure, upon her arrival in Saudi Arabia she was placed under the man’s guardianship, under which she is prohibited from leaving the country without her father’s permission,” it read. in the press release.

According to the Freedom Initiative, Morris was placed on a travel ban in September and “was notified she was under investigation for public disorder.”

The organization said, citing Morris’s family, that she was summoned to a police station on Monday over an alleged problem relating to her daughter’s identity, and added that “Morris’ ex-husband was waiting at the station police, and upon her arrival, the Saudi authorities forcibly returned the daughter to her father despite the girl’s protests “to stay with her mother. .

He continued: “Saudi authorities arrested Morris in front of his daughter and put shackles around her ankles and wrists during her detention, and she was questioned about her tweets and communication with the media and organizations. for human rights, and investigators told her it was a crime to do so. “The Freedom Initiative said Morris” was not. He has legal representation.

Interestingly, the US State Department confirmed on Tuesday that Carly Morris is being detained, and US State Department spokesman Ned Price told a news conference: “Our embassy in Riyadh is very involved in this case. They are following the situation closely.”

“We are aware of reports that Ms. Morris has been arrested and, of course, the safety of US citizens abroad is our top priority at the State Department,” the spokesman added at the time.

He continued, “We take our part in helping US citizens abroad very seriously. When someone is detained abroad, we seek immediate access to visit the person to assist them with all appropriate consular assistance, and our Embassy in Riyadh is very involved in this issue.” They are monitoring the situation closely.”

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