Greg Norman sent letter by sister of a death row prisoner begging him to discuss human rights issues

The sister of a man on death row in Saudi Arabia has begged Greg Norman to use his position as LIV golf chief to highlight human rights violations in the Gulf state.

In a letter to Norman, which was passed on to… Sports postZeinab Abu al-Kheir sheds light on the case of her 57-year-old brother Hussein, a Jordanian father of eight who she says was brutally tortured to confess to a drug smuggling charge in 2014.

With the Saudi-backed LIV tour accused of being complicit in sport-washing, Abu Al-Kheir has begged Norman to challenge that perception by publicly discussing her brother’s situation.

When approached by Sports post during LIV’s season finale in Miami, Norman said, “I didn’t see it.” He declined to comment further when he shared details about its contents.

The letter read: ‘You may think this is not your concern – that you are a golfer and golf manager and that your actions do not affect the human rights of people in Saudi Arabia. This may help you sleep at night, but it’s not true.

“Sport washing kills. Mohammed bin Salman’s regime has invested billions of dollars to whitewash its global image by promoting golf, Formula 1, football, boxing and other sports. Meanwhile, the pace of executions has increased.

The letter begged the Australian to speak out against human rights violations in Saudi Arabia

“On March 12 of this year, Saudi Arabia executed 81 men in one day – the largest mass execution in the country’s history. More than half of them had been convicted of taking part in pro-democracy demonstrations.

Then, just 12 days later, Formula 1 hosted a Grand Prix in Jeddah. The message was horrifying: no matter how many people the authorities kill, the world will look away.’

It added: “You have a choice: you can ignore the bloodstains on the welcome mat or you can acknowledge them and demand change. Elite golf can be a good thing in Saudi Arabia, but only if the leading players and tour guides push for reform as a precondition for playing there. A state that carries out mass executions is not a suitable place to organize international sporting events.’

Saudi Arabia’s GP came 12 days after the biggest mass execution in the country’s history

About her brother’s imprisonment, Abu Al-Kheir wrote: ‘My story begins eight years ago, when my younger brother Hussein, a Jordanian citizen, was arrested for alleged drug smuggling. He was then 48 years old and was working as a driver for a family in Saudi Arabia.

The letter states that Norman and the LIV tour can use their platform to push for change

“The customs officers at the border found a bag of amphetamine pills in his car. Hussein didn’t know they were there. Think about it: how could a poor driver, a working man, have the money to buy the drugs or the connections to sell them?

Officers tortured my brother for 12 days until he ‘confessed’. They hung him by his feet from the ceiling, head down, and beat him on the face, stomach and hands. We could see the marks that this torture left on his body for a year.

“During the years he spent in prison, his physical health has deteriorated day by day. My brother is now 57 years old, almost blind and has pain in his legs and stomach as a result of his torture. He hasn’t seen a doctor in seven years.

“My brother should be home with his eight children, not on death row in Saudi Arabia.

“If you and the players use your platform to push for change, meaningful reform is possible. If the government of Saudi Arabia fulfills its promise to end the death penalty for non-fatal crimes, the number of executions will be halved each year. My brother will be spared, along with so many others who should never have been sentenced to death.”

The letter states that Norman and the LIV tour can use their platform to push for change

Human rights organization Reprieve reiterated Abu Al-Kheir’s call to LIV golfers and officials to push for change.

Jeed Basyouni, who leads their team in the Middle East and North Africa, told Sportsmail: “When LIV golfers recently competed in Saudi Arabia, the organizers made sure they didn’t have to answer difficult questions. And when the winner gets $4 million and the last place finishes $120,000 just for appearing, it’s easy to see why no one wants to rock the boat by mentioning human rights.

But the fact is, no matter how hard they try to convince the world otherwise, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is still a place where children, nonviolent drug offenders and people exercising their right to freedom of expression are sentenced to death. And any sporting event that conveys the false image that the Saudi authorities want the world to see, without asking questions, makes the next mass execution more likely.”

Al-Kheir’s letter claims Saudi Arabia is a place where many are ‘sentenced to death’