Manama: A former Saudi soldier has been sentenced to nine years in jail and fined 5,000 rials (Dh47,701) after he was found guilty of joining the Daesh terror group.
The court in the Red Sea city of Jeddah also sentenced the ex-military man to a nine-year travel ban that starts after the completion of his jail term.
According to the case documents, the Saudi national travelled illegally to Syria after landing in Turkey, contacted some paramilitary brigades and groups and joined Daesh.
He was trained on the use of the Kalashnikov machine gun at dedicated camps run by the terrorist groups and participated in operations under the orders of Daesh, the court heard.
The defendant was also found guilty of handing over his passport to two people from the Daesh group, and of disobeying the ruler and not honouring the military pledge of allegiance to the country and leaders, Saudi daily Okaz reported on Tuesday.
The court also found him guilty of assisting and protecting his maternal cousin who left for Syria with him to join militant groups and become involved in armed conflicts.
The judges stressed in their verdict the defendant had engaged in dangerous actions by joining militant groups, particularly Daesh, a group that had waged war and announced its animosity against Saudi Arabia and adopted aggressions and bombings as its tactics.
The defendant should not have left the country and should have honoured his pledge to upholding public order and carrying out military orders and instructions.