Family says Rami Naimi has been unable to leave Saudi Arabia for nine years
The family of businessman Rami Naimi has said that he has been unable to leave Saudi Arabia for nine years. Naimi’s wife, Mira Logi, and his children have launched the public #BRINGRAMIHOME campaign in London after lengthy private efforts to secure his release.
As ABC News Australia reports, in November 2017 Naimi flew from Sydney to London after an Australian tour by his father, Ali al-Naimi, the former Saudi oil minister and head of Saudi Aramco. According to Logi, during a stopover in Dubai, her husband was stopped by border guards, taken to Abu Dhabi and then flown by private jet to Riyadh.
Allegations of torture
The family claims that Naimi was held at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh during the large-scale anti-corruption campaign ordered in 2017 by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Relatives say that over two months he was interrogated, tortured with electric shocks and subjected to simulated drowning.
According to those close to him, over the following nine years Naimi was imprisoned twice, forced to hand over his savings, tried behind closed doors and kept under constant surveillance. Phone calls with his family, they say, were brief and monitored.
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Charges and international appeals
Last year, Saudi officials charged Naimi with using his father’s official influence. He is accused of helping an American company obtain a contract with Saudi Aramco while acting as its representative. Naimi denies the charges.
According to ABC News Australia, a closed court sentenced him to six years in prison, but he is currently outside prison with an electronic ankle monitor and lives with his seriously ill father. Naimi is also accused of following social media accounts deemed “hostile” to Saudi Arabia and attempting to leave the country without permission; these cases are still being considered by the courts.
Family lawyer Caoilfhionn Gallagher said that from 2017 until the beginning of 2025, Naimi was not charged and was not provided due process. Her team is appealing to representatives of Malta, of which Naimi is a citizen, the United States, the European Union and the UN. Saudi authorities did not respond to ABC’s requests for comment on the case.
