Kuwait City: A Kuwaiti criminal court has sentenced in absentia blogger Saqr Al Hashash to five years in prison on charges of defaming the status of the country’s Emir, Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai reported on Wednesday.

The latest verdict raises to 91 years and eight months in prison the overall rulings passed against the Kuwaiti opposition activist in different cases, according to the paper.

Al Hashash, who is living in The Netherlands, had been previously convicted on charges related to insulting the judiciary and police in Kuwait in Twitter comments.