 Raif Badawi, the Saudi Arabian blogger whose punishment of 1,000 lashes has prompted international condemnation, may now face the death penalty. Mr Badawi’s wife, Ensaf Haidar, told The Independent in a series of messages that judges in Saudi Arabia’s criminal court want him to undergo a re-trial for apostasy. She said the “dangerous information” had come from “official sources” inside the conservative kingdom, where Mr Badawi has already been sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes – administered at a rate of 50 per week – for criticising the country’s clerics through his liberal blog. In pictures: Raif Badawi release protests 15 show all In pictures: Raif Badawi release protests 1/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in Helvetiaplatz, Berne, Switzerland 2/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in London, UK 3/15 Raif Badawi release protests Ensaf Haider speaks during a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in Ottawa, Canada 4/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in Warsaw, Poland 5/15 Raif Badawi release protests A poster depicting Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, asking for his immediate release, hangs on a gate of a building in Italy 6/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in Paris, France 7/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi in Brussels, Belgium 8/15 Raif Badawi release protests People take part in a protest by Amnesty International, for the immediate release of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi AFP 9/15 Raif Badawi release protests Ensaf Haidar, centre, wife of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, holds a vigil in Montreal, Quebec, urging Saudi Arabia to free her husband Getty Images 10/15 Raif Badawi release protests Participant of the Amnesty International protest holds a banner which reads: 'Je suis Raif!'
– After an international outcry over the harsh sentence handed out to a Saudi Arabian blogger, the kingdom now appears to have decided a decade in prison and 1,000 lashes is too lenient. Raif Badawi's wife tells the Independent that official sources say charges of apostasy against him may be reinstated. Converting from Islam to another faith is punishable by beheading in Saudi Arabia, and an apostasy charge against Badawi was thrown out of court in 2013 after he told the judge he was still a Muslim. reports the Independent. The prosecution's evidence included the fact that he once liked a Facebook page for Arab Christians. Badawi's wife, who now lives in Canada with their three children, tells the CBC that she won't stop fighting for his freedom. "We call on the world citizens and governments not to leave Raif dragged by such bigots to death," the family said in a statement. Amnesty International, which is calling for Badawi's release, says it's trying to confirm rumors of a new trial. Badawi was scheduled to receive 50 lashes a week for 20 weeks, but later rounds of lashings have been delayed because of injuries he suffered in the first flogging.