saudis. according to his family, he is officially broken and deteriorat deteriorated. they have been able to communicate with the doctor. >> as of this moment, my understanding is we've had what's called consular access, meaning american diplomats in saudi arabia have visited with him. beyond that, we don't really have additional information at this point. >> let's bring in cnn's national diplomatic editor nic robertson who is live in saudi arabia. what do we know about this case and why do we believe he's been tortured? >> the family has had very close contact with him in prison. he was one of many who was rounded up by crown prince mohamed salman and put in a hotel and there for many months. he was transferred to jail without due process, we