Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi has had his sentence of 1,000 lashes suspended, a Swiss government official told reporters on Satruday.
His wife, Ensaf Haidar, hasn’t been able to confirm the suspension, but took to twitter to say she knew the Swiss government was working hard on his case.
Last year, Badawi was sentenced to 1,000 lashings and 10 years in prison for starting a website for social change in Saudi Arabia, according to Amnesty International.
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He was supposed to receive 50 lashes every Friday for 20 weeks, but only received one session in January 2015.
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Badawi, is a Saudi Arabian writer, but his wife and three children received political asylum in Quebec in 2013, according to his website.
The provincial government in Quebec has called for his release, and has promised him an immigration certificate on humanitarian grounds.
A petition calling for his immediate release on Amnesty International has over 1 million signatures.
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