Europe, Canada, Australia issue first rebuke of Saudi Arabia at UN forum

GENEVA, (Reuters) - Three dozen countries, including all 28 EU members, called on Saudi Arabia yesterday to release 10 activists and cooperate with a U.N.led investigation into the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at its Istanbul consulate.

It was the first rebuke of the kingdom at the U.N. Human Rights Council since it was set up in 2006, and came amid growing international concern about alleged Saudi violations of basic freedoms such as freedom of expression.

“It is a success for Europe to be united on this,” an envoy of an EU country told Reuters.

The unprecedented joint statement, also backed by Canada and Australia but not the United States, was read out by Harald Aspelund, Iceland’s Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva.

“We are particularly concerned about the use of the counter-terrorism law and other national security provisions against individuals peacefully exercising their rights and freedoms,” Aspelund said, reading the text.

Activists can and should play “a vital role in the process of reform which the Kingdom is pursuing,” it said. Saudi ambassador Abdulaziz M.O. Alwasil stressed its efforts to uphold human rights but called for “dealing with the human rights issues in the Kingdom in an impartial and objective manner, far away from what is rumoured in some media and NGOs”.

The Saudi mission tweeted a summary of his remarks to the Council, saying he underlined “the right of sovereign countries to deal with issues affecting their security in accordance with their national laws and international obligations”.

The joint statement called for the release of Loujain Al-Hathloul, Eman Al-Nafjan, Aziza Al-Yousef, Nassima Al-Sadah, Samar Badawi, Nouf Abdelaziz, Hatoon Al-Fassi, Mohammed Al-Bajadi, Amal AlHarbi and Shadan al-Anezi.