Dual American-Saudi citizen held in Saudi Arabia is free, son says
Saad Almadi, a dual Saudi-American who was arrested in Saudi Arabia and later barred from leaving the country for four years, is on his way back to the United States, according to his son Ibrahim Almadi.
Almadi's release was secured during the U.S. visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who met with President Donald Trump at the White House Tuesday.
The younger Almadi said the release "would not have been possible without" Trump and White House aide Sebastian Gorka, as well as House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Ibrahim Almadi told ABC News he ran into Johnson at a restaurant, where the top House Republican agreed to advocate for his father's release.
ABC News has reached out to the White House for confirmation.
Ibrahim Almadi said was "shocked" when he received a phone call directly from his father, who told him he'd be allowed to leave Saudi Arabia. Almadi booked the soonest flight.
It wasn't clear if Trump waded directly into the case, Almadi told ABC News, or if the crown prince authorized the lifting of the exit ban. But he said it was apparent that, despite public hospitality for their Saudi guests, American officials applied pressure on the Kingdom over Almadi's case.
Saad Almadi, who is now 75, was arrested in 2021 on charges of terrorism for a series of 14 tweets, one of which drew attention to the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Ibrahim Almadi said in a post on X. The charges were later reduced to "cyber crimes," and Saad Almadi was released from detention but barred from leaving Saudi Arabia until 2054.
In an interview with ABC News before his father's release, Almadi said the State Department "saved his life" by getting his charges reduced. But he had expressed pessimism that Trump would continue to push for Almadi's freedom, insisting "one call" to the crown prince would convince bin Salman to lift the exit ban.
