Tag Archives: Human rights

The US State Department has approved a potential agreement covering up to $500 million in military support services for Saudi Arabia, and has sent the agreement to Congress for review, the Pentagon said on Thursday. It was the first major defense agreement for Saudi Arabia sent to Congress since President …

U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday she was “deeply concerned” about the alleged torture of a Saudi aid worker while in detention in Saudi Arabia. The aid worker, Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, was detained by Saudi authorities in March 2018 and reported to be sentenced to …

By Emad El-Din Aysha, PhD     Before I say anything at all I have to highlight that this movie, Mousa (2021), is to be commended just for the fact that it’s an Egyptian (and Arabic SF) production, something almost unheard of and inexcusably neglected nowadays in the world of …

U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday will host Jordan’s King Abdullah, a key U.S. ally in a volatile region, in what will be the first of three face-to-face meetings with leaders from the Middle East expected soon. Abdullah, who faced down a challenge to his authority in April from his …

The United States on Wednesday warned Egypt not to target rights campaigners after a prominent activist was indicted, saying the issue would be a factor in arms sales to the ally. Hossam Bahgat, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, said this week that prosecutors indicted him and …

A human rights expert has called for an independent inquiry into allegations of state-ordered executions of thousands of of political prisoners in Iran in 1988 and the role played by President Ebrahim Raisi.  Javaid Rehman, the UN investigator on human rights, said on Monday that he believes it is ‘very important’ to …

Overlooking war-battered Gaza from the tenth floor of a tower block, Palestinian human rights lawyer Raji Sourani has a new bundle of files — on victims of last month’s war with Israel. For years, he has been building cases in the Israeli-blockaded enclave to be submitted to the International Criminal …

The Palestinian Authority (PA) on Saturday deployed security forces to confront protesters who took to the streets of Ramallah in the West Bank after one of President Mahmoud Abbas’s biggest critics died in custody. Nizar Banat had been arrested by PA forces who broke into a relative’s house where he …

A Palestinian activist who died in the custody of President Mahmoud Abbas’s security forces took blows to the head, a Palestinian rights group said after conducting an autopsy, adding the wounds indicated “an unnatural death”. According to relatives, Nizar Banat was severely beaten during his arrest by Palestinian security forces …

The Philippine president has threatened to order the arrest of Filipinos who refuse COVID-19 vaccination and told them to leave the country if they would not cooperate with the efforts to contain the pandemic. President Rodrigo Duterte, who is known for his public outbursts and brash rhetoric, said in televised …

Amnesty International released a report Saturday saying that Iran’s newly elected leader Ebrahim Raisi is involved in crimes against humanity, including murder, torture and forced disappearances. The report, which came out a few hours after Raisi was named the winner of the Islamic republic’s presidential election, denounces his rise to presidency instead of …

Criteria for European Union sanctions being prepared for Lebanese politicians are likely to be corruption, obstructing efforts to form a government, financial mishandling and human rights abuses, according to a diplomatic note seen by Reuters. Led by France, the EU is seeking to ramp up pressure on Lebanon’s squabbling politicians …

President Joe Biden and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan agreed in a meeting this week that Turkey would take a lead role in securing Kabul airport as the United States withdraws troops from Afghanistan, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Thursday. However, the two leaders were not able to …

Driving through one the villages of Mount Lebanon to get my car serviced. I stopped at a particular mechanic shop to get Freon put into my air conditioner. The mechanic on duty referred me to another workshop in the neighboring village as not all places provide such a service apparently. …

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince has taken a more conciliatory public stance towards Iran, trying to balance long-held animosity with economic considerations and bridge differences with Washington over how to tackle Tehran’s regional behaviour. Tensions between Riyadh and Tehran have festered over the Yemen war, where an Iran-aligned group has increased …

U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has told Congress it is proceeding with more than $23 billion in weapons sales to the United Arab Emirates, including advanced F-35 aircraft, armed drones and other equipment, congressional aides said on Tuesday. A State Department spokesperson said the administration would move forward with the …

A British-based campaigner who helped detain an Iranian lawyer allegedly involved in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners has provided international prosecutors with evidence for the arrest of nearly 20 regime officials. The secret list is believed to include Ebrahim Raisi, potential successor to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali …

 Human Rights Watch says a Saudi man who was convicted following a “grossly unfair trial” for crimes committed when he was a minor risks being executed although the Saudi authorities have said they have scrapped the death penalty for juveniles. Abdullah al-Huwaiti was convicted by a criminal court in October …

The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada imposed sanctions on Chinese officials on Monday for human rights abuses in Xinjiang, the first such coordinated Western action against Beijing under new U.S. President Joe Biden. Chinese territory of Xinjiang, Beijing hit back immediately with punitive measures against the EU …

Myanmar’s most powerful Buddhist monks’ association called on the junta to end violence against protesters and accused an “armed minority” of torture and killing innocent civilians since last month’s coup, media said on Wednesday. In its most forthright condemnation of the military’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations, the government-appointed organisation …

Iranian authorities have charged French tourist Benjamin Briere, arrested 10 months ago, with espionage and “propaganda against the system”, one of his lawyers told Reuters on Monday. The news comes as the United States and European parties to Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal, including France, are trying to restore the pact …

Three NGOs on Monday announced a landmark legal case in Moscow against Russian mercenary group Wagner over the torture of a detainee in Syria, aiming to hold to account a murky fighting force with Kremlin links. “This litigation is a first-ever attempt by the family of a Syrian victim to …

Bahrain has rejected the European Parliament (EP) resolution on the human rights situation in the Kingdom, affirming its lack of evidence, state news agency BNA reported. Bahrain has always exerted efforts to promote human rights and the resolution does not reflect that, Defence and National Security Committee Deputy Chairman Isa …

A Saudi court on Wednesday upheld the original sentence of women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul, who had championed women’s right to drive and for an end to Saudi Arabia’s male guardianship system. Hathloul was sentenced in December to nearly six years in prison under broad cybercrime and counterterrorism laws after …

After Iran last month imposed an Internet shutdown lasting several days in a southeastern region during a rare upsurge of unrest, activists say the government is now using the tactic repeatedly when protests erupt. Rights groups say at least 10 people were killed when security forces opened fire on fuel …

A Chinese court has ordered a man to pay his former wife 50,000 yuan ($7,700) as compensation for housework she did during their five-year marriage, state media reported on Wednesday. Under a landmark civil code that seeks to better protect the rights of individuals, spouses can seek compensation from their …

Israel estimates that hundreds of its citizens might be subject to war crimes probes by the International Criminal Court, whose jurisdiction it rejects, and is working on how to protect them, the Defence Minister said on Tuesday. Including himself among Israelis who could be threatened with arrest, Benny Gantz told …

A U.N. human rights investigator said on Monday that it was “extremely dangerous” for the United States to have named Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler as having approved an operation to capture or kill journalist Jamal Khashoggi but not to have taken action against him. Agnes Callamard, special rapporteur on …

President Joe Biden on Saturday said his administration would make an announcement on Saudi Arabia on Monday, following a U.S. intelligence report that found Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had approved the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The Biden administration has faced some criticism, notably an editorial in the Washington …

The world reacted to the release on Friday of a U.S. intelligence assessment that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved an operation to capture or kill dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi: OFFICE OF U.S. DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE REPORT: “We assess that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved …

The Biden administration announced sanctions and visa bans on Friday targeting Saudi Arabian citizens over the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but stopped short of imposing sanctions on Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman himself. U.S. President Joe Biden’s actions in the first weeks of his administration appear aimed at …

The Dutch parliament on Thursday passed a non-binding motion saying the treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority in China amounts to genocide, the first such move by a European country. Activists and UN rights experts say at least one million Muslims are being detained in camps in the remote western …

U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday told Saudi King Salman he would work for bilateral ties “as strong and transparent as possible,” the White House said, ahead of the expected release of a sensitive U.S. intelligence report on the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The report is a …

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday the United States had begun to communicate with Iran over the country’s detention of American citizens, calling the matter a “complete and utter outrage”. Iran has arrested dozens of dual nationals, including several Americans, in recent years, mostly on espionage …

President Joe Biden plans to shift U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia and will conduct diplomacy through Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz rather than his powerful son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the White House said on Tuesday. The announcement by White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki was an abrupt reversal in …

President Joe Biden’s aides have launched a formal review of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, reviving the Obama-era goal of closing the controversial facility with the aim of doing so before he leaves office, the White House said on Friday. Aides involved in internal discussions are …

The sisters of prominent Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul said on Thursday they wanted real justice for her, and the lifting of a travel ban, the day after she was released from prison on a suspended sentence. Hathloul, 31, has campaigned for women’s right to drive and to end …

Prominent women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul was released from a Saudi prison after nearly three years behind bars, her family said on Wednesday, a case that has drawn international condemnation. Hathloul, 31, was detained in May 2018 and sentenced in December to nearly six years in prison on charges that …

The US commitment to Saudi Arabia remains clear and unshakeable, the country’s charge d’affaires, Martina Strong, has said. “Our commitment to Saudi Arabia just as we have over decades remains unshakeable and remains clear,” she told Arab News. “We are very clear-eyed about the threats that Saudi Arabia faces and …

Saudi Arabia’s state-backed Human Rights Commission said on Sunday that three young Shi’ite Muslims sentenced to death when they were minors have had the penalty reduced to 10 years in prison. Ali Al-Nimr, the nephew of prominent Shi’ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr whose 2016 execution sparked demonstrations in Saudi Arabia and …

Human rights groups and media watchdogs have condemned the separate arrests of two journalists in Iran on vague charges. The journalists are Reza Taleshian Jelodarzadeh, editor in chief of Tehran-based magazine Nour-e Azadi, and Mahmoud Mahmoudi, editor of the Kurdish Aigrin Roj Weekly. Jelodarzadeh used Instagram to post a photo …

President Joe Biden on Thursday declared a halt to U.S. support for a Saudi Arabia-led military campaign in Yemen, demanding that the more than six-year war, widely seen as a proxy conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran, “has to end.” Biden also named veteran U.S. diplomat Timothy Lenderking as the …

US President Joe Biden on a call with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison discussed how they can work together to address global and regional challenges, including dealing with China. They also talked about beating the COVID-19 pandemic, combating climate change and working together to hold those responsible for the coup …

A tough new line in Washington against the Erdogan regime in Turkey has raised alarm bells in Ankara, analysts have told Arab News. Turkey has embarked on a charm offensive toward the Western world, but US decision-makers are increasingly questioning the state of the “strategic partnership” between the traditional allies. …