A British national has been sentenced to 10 years in jail on charges that appear to be related to the deleted tweet, according to a British lawyer and campaign group representing his family.

Ahmed Al-Doush was arrested in August and it is understood that British Foreign Ministry officials were allowed to enter the Saudi court for hearing, but the British government has been criticized for lack of action since its arrest.

Jeed Basyouni, who led the work of the human rights group slowly halting the use of the death penalty, said: “This is something that could happen when the British government fails to support the right of its citizens to arbitrarily detain overseas.

“A British man was kidnapped in front of his family and disappeared from Saudi prison on unknown charges, while the Foreign Ministry failed to do what needs to be done and seek release.

"When a British national was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison, his family, lawyers and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had no idea what crime he was charged with, it was a very serious mistake."

She added: “It is not a tragedy for families who are seriously disappointed by the government, and that would be ridiculous.”

The British National's Special Envoy was arbitrarily appointed to be detained overseas.

Doush's wife, Amaher Nour, is headquartered in Manchester and has four children, one of which was born and her husband was detained in Saudi Arabia. A brief message that the Saudi government was appointed as his lawyer to sentence him to a long sentence.

It is understood that at the hearing, Foreign Ministry officials were able to pass the news of the judgment to Duss's British lawyers.

Haydee Dijkstal is a barrister at 33 Bedford Row Chambers and an international consultant to Doush.

Nour said before the verdict: “I rarely talk to my husband, but in some of the robbery conversations we had, it was obvious that Ahmed was struggling.

“He has thyroid problems and has suffered from mental distress. He is worried about his family, especially when he is the only breadwinner. He missed the birth of our fourth child and our 10th anniversary.

“Because Ahmed is a British citizen, we want the UK to provide clarity in the storm of uncertainty. But the Foreign Office refused to share information with me for several months (citing data protection) while simultaneously accepting the assurances of Saudi Arabia at ostensibly value.”

The Foreign Ministry also said that Central and Eastern Central Minister Hamish Falconer has filed lawsuits with Saudi officials several times, but Nour said she had been denied a meeting with Foreign Minister David Lammy.

Her husband has only received consular service three times since being imprisoned in August.

She said: "We believe Ahmed was accused of a tweet posted seven years ago and was subsequently deleted.

“Ahmed has been sleeping in a crowded cell. My husband is a dedicated family man dedicated to his children and spent weekends bringing them to restaurants and parks. They were upset and they kept asking him when he would be back. I no longer know how to answer their questions.

“For me, night was an empty blank, and I questioned over and over again why this happened to us.

“What Ahmed has endured in the past eight months is tortuous long solitary confinement, unclear charges, forced confessions and excessive surveillance by prison authorities, all of which are managed by legal counsel designated by powerless states.”