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Saudi Arabia has granted permission for US citizen Saad Almadi to return home to Florida, well before of the planned removal of travel restrictions and a day after Saudi crown prince and prime minister met Donald Trump at the White House.

Judicial Proceedings Background

Almadi, seventy-five, was given 19 years of incarceration in the kingdom in 2021 after he wrote 14 tweets opposing the Riyadh government. After 24 months, the charges were reduced to so-called "cyber crimes" and he was sentenced to a 30-year ban on leaving Saudi Arabia.

"Our family is overjoyed that, after four long years, our father, Saad Almadi, is at last on his way home to the United States!"

The announcement that Almadi, a person with dual nationality and former engineering professional who had resided in the US since the 1970s, would be free to leave the country came after the US president delivered a speech touting US-Saudi ties, including weapons deals and investment deals.

Political Recognition

"This day would not have been possible without President Donald Trump and the tireless efforts of his administration. We are extremely thankful to Dr Sebastian Gorka and the team at the national security council, as well as everyone at the foreign affairs office," it added.

The declaration by Almadi's son, Ibrahim Almadi, also thanked various non-profit organizations, including the James Foley Fund and Hostages America, and House speaker Mike Johnson for supporting the older Almadi's cause. He subsequently shared on social media that his father was traveling to the US.

Broader Context

Almadi is one of a handful of American people with dual nationality facing exit bans from Saudi Arabia following a crackdown on online dissent. His son has previously claimed that Almadi was coerced to sign papers giving up his US citizenship.

The case against Almadi centered on social media posts in which he was alleged to have urged Saudi citizens to seek Lebanese citizenship and criticized the kingdom's defenses against Houthi rocket strikes.

Additionally, he supported the renaming of a street in the US capital after Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist and Washington Post columnist murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

Khashoggi Case

US intelligence reports published by the Biden administration later assessed that the crown prince had authorized of a plan to "detain or eliminate" Khashoggi.

Questioned regarding the killing, Trump said the crown prince "was unaware" of Khashoggi's killing. The Saudi crown prince has maintained his innocence. He said at the White House that Saudi Arabia "did all the right things" to examine Khashoggi's death, which he called "distressing" and a "huge mistake".

Diplomatic Pressure

US pressure to free Almadi and allow him to come back to the US has been increasing since Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia in May. Many urged Trump's claim that he is particularly effective in bringing back US citizens detained overseas.

When asked by a reporter in May about the case, Trump said he didn't know about it but promised to take a look. A few weeks later, one of his national security aides, Gorka, met the son at the White House.

"President Trump is the master negotiator and he enjoys working with the Saudis and we will win your father back," Johnson said.