Florida Grandfather Finally Home After Four-Year Saudi Ordeal
A 75-year-old American retiree from Florida has finally returned to the United States after being detained in Saudi Arabia for four years over social media posts critical of the kingdom's powerful Crown Prince.
Saad Almadi landed in Philadelphia on a flight from Doha on Thursday, 20 November 2025, just two days after President Donald Trump hosted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House. The surprise lifting of a travel ban that had trapped Almadi for years allowed for his emotional homecoming.
Arrest Over Tweets and a 19-Year Sentence
Almadi's nightmare began in 2021 during a planned two-week family visit to Saudi Arabia. Officials confronted the retired project manager, who immigrated to the US in the 1970s, with old tweets he had posted from his home in Boca Raton, Florida.
The posts included one discussing the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi and another on the Crown Prince's consolidation of power. Saudi authorities tried him on terrorism-related charges for these social media activities.
He was swiftly sentenced to more than 19 years in prison. After more than a year behind bars, he was freed but placed under an exit ban, preventing him from returning to his life in Florida. The Associated Press further reported that Saudi officials had pressured Almadi to renounce his American citizenship.
A Diplomatic Thaw and a Turning Point
The case saw a significant shift with Trump's return to the White House and his administration's push to restore relations with Riyadh. In a September ruling, Almadi was found guilty of the lesser charge of distributing online content that undermines public order, which carried a three-year sentence.
His son, Ibrahim Almadi, who greeted his father at the airport for the first time in four years, believes the harsh treatment was a warning to others to stay silent. "Thanks to the American passport, which saved my father from being in prison for the coming 20 years," he stated emotionally.
While the exact role of the Trump administration remains unclear, a meeting was held between the younger Almadi and a White House national security aide in the months leading up to the release.
Deepening US-Saudi Ties Under Trump
The release coincides with a marked warming of relations between Washington and Riyadh. During the Crown Prince's high-profile visit, President Trump heaped praise on him and downplayed the kingdom's human rights record.
The visit featured a red-carpet fighter jet flyover and a lavish state dinner. Trump also announced a decision to sell F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia.
This renewed partnership is underscored by the Trump family's extensive business dealings with the kingdom, including a recent deal with a Saudi-linked developer for a Trump-branded project in Qatar and a luxury high-rise in Jeddah. A private equity firm controlled by Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also received a $2 billion investment from the sovereign wealth fund controlled by the Crown Prince.
The US State Department declined to comment on the specifics of Almadi's case but confirmed it welcomed his return, stating that the safety of US citizens is its highest priority.
