( CNN ) -- Two men were found guilty in Saudi courts this week for , among other offenses , messages they posted on Twitter . On Monday , one Saudi man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for using Twitter to encourage protests and undermine the country 's leadership , according to Saudi Arabian state news agency SPA . `` The accused had sent invitations via Twitter to participate in protests and gatherings against the Kingdom , '' read SPA 's statement , quoting Saudi Justice Ministry spokesman Fahad Al-Bakran . Al-Bakran added how the unnamed man , already serving a three-year jail sentence , was convicted of utilizing websites that are `` hostile to the government and that promote deviant ideologies . '' Saudi officials often use the phrase `` deviant ideologies '' when describing al Qaeda or al Qaeda-linked groups . On Sunday , another man , accused of insulting King Abdullah and inciting protests via social media sites like Twitter , was sentenced to eight years in jail . According to SPA , he 's also barred from travel and from posting messages on social media sites for eight years after his release . The man , also unidentified by SPA , was found guilty of `` inciting relatives of Saudis arrested for security reasons to protest their imprisonment by tweeting and via posting videos on sites like YouTube . '' Al-Bakran added the man had been arrested once before for similar offenses , but was released after signing a pledge never to do so again . Both sentences come just days after Saudi Arabia officially declared the Muslim Brotherhood to be a terrorist organization . On Friday , the country 's Interior Ministry announced that the Brotherhood , as well as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ( ISIS ) , Al-Nusra Front and other groups had been formally designated terrorist organizations . American detained in UAE over parody video speaks out . The statement also detailed the country 's new , comprehensive anti-terror legislation , warning any Saudi or foreigner residing in Saudi Arabia they could be sentenced to heavy jail terms for joining extremist groups or fighting alongside them . Many , however , maintain the new laws are a barely disguised effort to quash dissent , pointing to the fact that Friday 's Interior Ministry statement also criminalized atheism , more specifically , any Saudi or resident of Saudi Arabia `` propagating atheist ideologies by any means , or questioning the principles of Islamic faith . '' `` It 's unfortunate that the statement comingles the ( Saudi ) government 's ongoing intent to severely limit freedoms of expression and religion with its efforts to counter extremism and terrorism , '' said Dwight Bashir , deputy director for policy and research with the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom . `` It reinforces longstanding concerns that the Saudis will spare no expense to crush dissent , '' Bashir told CNN , `` and punish non-conforming views , even if the views are protected by internationally-recognized human rights . '' Bashir called the move to criminalize atheism `` very troubling , '' adding it was `` consistent with the way the Saudis masquerade 'insults to religious feelings ' as a way of garnering support for other laws that seek to counter religious extremism and name specific entities as terror groups . '' Saudi Arabia , which has jailed several prominent reform activists in the past two years , is consistently singled out and criticized for its human rights record . In a statement from late February , Adam Coogle , a Saudi researcher for Human Rights Watch , wrote the new anti-terror legislation has `` created a veneer of legality for ongoing human rights abuses by Saudi criminal justice authorities . '' `` The terrorism law , '' added Coogle , `` is a vague , catch-all document that can -- and probably will -- be used to prosecute or jail anyone who criticizes the Saudi government and to violate their due process rights along the way . '' Girl costs father $ 80,000 with 'SUCK IT ' Facebook post .
One man sentenced to a decade in prison for posting pro-protest messages to Twitter . A second man got eight years , convicted of insulting Saudi Arabia 's king via Twitter . Critics say it 's all part of the kingdom 's efforts to quash dissent .