Sabaq electronic Saudi newspaper said that the Specialized Criminal Court began to consider the case filed by the Public Prosecutor against Al-Maliki and has been handed over the list of the lawsuit to be respond in the next session.

It added that the Saudi Prosecutor accused him of "inciting demonstrations and sit-ins in the sisterly country of Bahrain and being punished under a royal order" among some 14 other charges against him.

Saudi Crown Mohammed bin Salman's rise to power has seen a slew of businessmen, politicians and activists detained.

Saudi Arabia has recently stepped up politically-motivated arrests, prosecution, and conviction of peaceful dissident writers and human rights campaigners. Saudi officials have also intensified security measures in the kingdom’s Shia-populated Eastern Province.