Saudi Arabia 'infiltrated' Wikipedia, jailed administrators to control content: Rights groups

Just weeks after a former Twitter worker was jailed for 'spying' for Saudi Arabia, activists have now said that the kingdom has 'infiltrated' Wikipedia and has jailed two administrators in an attempt to control content on the website.The activists said that one administrator was jailed for 32 years while another was sentenced to eight years.

An investigation by parent body Wikimedia found that the Saudi government had penetrated Wikipedia's senior ranks in the region, with Saudi citizens acting or forced to act as agents, said two rights groups.

"Wikimedia's investigation revealed that the Saudi government had infiltrated the highest ranks in Wikipedia's team in the region," Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) and Beirut-based SMEX said in a joint statement.

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Washington-headquartered DAWN, founded by slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and SMEX, which promotes digital rights in the Arab world, cited "whistleblowers and trusted sources" for the information.

Neither Wikimedia nor the Saudi government issue any comment immediately.

DAWN and SMEX's statement comes after Wikimedia last month announced global ban for16 users "who were engaging in conflict of interest editing on Wikipedia projects in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region".

In an investigation that started last January, Wikimedia said they "were able to confirm that a number of users with close connections with external parties were editing content on the platform in a coordinated fashion to advance the aim of those parties".

Wikimedia was referring to Saudis acting under the influence of the Saudi government, DAWN and SMEX said, citing their sources.

(With inputs from agencies)

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