BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia lashed out at Canada on Monday for criticizing the recent arrests of Saudi rights activists, and threatened to break off trade with other Western countries if they too spoke out about political repression in the kingdom.
The unusually harsh response by the Saudi government was the latest evidence that while Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is promoting himself as a reformer, championing the loosening of conservative social norms and opening the economy, he is also prepared to punish any perceived challenge to his authority at home or abroad.
Faced with economic troubles at home, and a restless, young population, the crown prince has carried out a crackdown that is extraordinary even by the standards of an absolute monarchy that has never allowed much room for free speech.
After what once would have passed as a pro forma complaint from Canada, Saudi Arabia expelled the Canadian ambassador, withdrew its ambassador from Canada and froze new business deals and investment with Canada.
Image copyright EPA Image caption Samar Badawi - a prominent human rights campaigner whose brother is serving a 10-year sentence - was arrested last week
Saudi Arabia's state airliner has suspended its direct flights to Toronto after Canada called for the release of detained activists for civil society and women's rights.
The Middle Eastern country has also frozen all trade and expelled Canada's ambassador over the "interference".
Canada has responded by saying it "will continue to advocate for human rights".
Those held include the Saudi-American human rights campaigner Samar Badawi, sister of jailed blogger Raif Badawi.
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said she was "deeply concerned" by the diplomat's expulsion, but added: "Canada will always stand up for the protection of human rights, including women's rights and freedom of expression around the world.
"We will never hesitate to promote these values and we believe that this dialogue is critical to international diplomacy."
Her Saudi counterpart, Adel al-Jubeir, had earlier tweeted that Canada's position was based on "misleading information", adding that anyone arrested was "subject to Saudi laws that guarantee their rights".
The leading Saudi women's rights campaigner Manal al-Sharif thanked Canada for "speaking up" and asked when other Western powers would do the same.
In what appeared to be a further sign of deteriorating relations between the two countries, a verified Twitter account, which is reportedly linked to Saudi authorities, shared an image of a plane flying towards Toronto's famed CN Tower.
The image was overlaid with text, including a quote which read "he who with what doesn't concern him finds what doesn't please him".
People on social media have been quick to point out the similarities between the image and images of 9/11.
The account has since been deleted, but cached versions of the tweet are circulating online.
Who is being held?
Last Tuesday, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said at least 15 human rights defenders and women's rights activists critical of the Saudi government had been arrested or detained arbitrarily since 15 May.
Eight of them are believed to have been released pending "procedural reviews", but the whereabouts of several others are unknown.
Several of those detained have been accused of serious crimes, including "suspicious contact with foreign parties", and could face up to 20 years in prison.
Human rights groups reported that Ms Badawi was also detained last week, along with fellow women's rights campaigner Nassima al-Sadah.
Ms Badawi was given the US International Women of Courage Award in 2012 and is known for challenging Saudi Arabia's male guardianship system.
Her brother Raif was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for "insulting Islam" online back in 2014, while his wife, Ensaf Haidar, lives in Canada and recently became a Canadian citizen.
What did Canada say?
Image copyright AFP Image caption Chrystia Freeland called for the release of Samar Badawi and her brother Raif
Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland wrote on Twitter on Thursday that she was "very alarmed" to learn that Ms Badawi had been detained.
The next day, the Canadian foreign ministry called for the activist's "immediate release".
Skip Twitter post by @CanadaFP Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in #SaudiArabia, including Samar Badawi. We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists. — Foreign Policy CAN (@CanadaFP) August 3, 2018 Report
How did Saudi Arabia react?
The Saudi foreign ministry statement expressed "disbelief [at] this negative unfounded comment which was not based [on] any accurate or true information".
It insisted the activists were being detained lawfully and that the Canadian statements represented "blatant interference in the kingdom's domestic affairs".
The ministry recalled its ambassador to Canada for consultations and declared the Canadian ambassador persona non grata, giving him 24 hours to leave.
Saudi Arabia would also "put on hold all new business and investment transactions with Canada while retaining its right to take further action", it said. Trade between the two countries was worth $3bn (£2.3bn) in 2016.
All scholarships enabling Saudi students to study in Canada were also suspended, while students already in the country will be relocated.
It is unclear how many people this will affect. The Vancouver Sun said in 2015 that about 5,000 new students arrive from Saudi Arabia each year.
Saudi Arabia's state airline is suspending flights in and out of Toronto amid an intensifying diplomatic row with Canada.
Earlier on Monday, Ottawa refused to back down in its defence of human rights after Riyadh froze new trade and investment and expelled the Canadian ambassador in retaliation for the country's call to free arrested Saudi civil society activists.
In her first public response to Saudi Arabia's actions, foreign minister Chrystia Freeland said, "Let me be very clear... Canada will always stand up for human rights in Canada and around the world, and women's rights are human rights."
On Monday evening, the airline, Saudia, made the announcement on its Twitter account that it was suspending flights from the 13 August.
The news prompted users to ask how Saudis already on holiday in Canada were going to get back.
"Can I know how my family and I get back after the holiday?" one Twitter user asked Saudia. "We have a confirmed reservation and return tickets on August 24 from Toronto to Riyadh!"
Riyadh on Sunday recalled its ambassador from Canada and gave the Canadian ambassador 24 hours to leave. The Saudi government also banned new trade with Canada, although it was unclear if it would affect existing annual Saudi-Canadian trade of more than £3bn billion and a £10bn defence contract.
The moves were a stern rebuke to Canada after the country on Friday expressed concern over the arrests of activists in Saudi Arabia, including prominent women's rights campaigner Samar Badawi, and called for their release.
Riyadh said that amounted to "a blatant interference in the Kingdom's domestic affairs, against basic international norms and all international protocols."
Saudi Arabia's sudden sharp response to criticism shows the limits of reforms by Saudi Arabia's 32-year-old crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, who runs its day-to-day government. He has launched a campaign of social and economic change, but has not eased the absolute monarchy's total ban on political activism.
In recent months Saudi Arabia has lifted a ban on women driving, but it has also arrested activists, including more than a dozen high profile campaigners for women's rights.
On Monday, Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir again criticised Canada's calls to free arrested civil society activists as a position built on "misleading" information.
Saudi Women celebrate their freedom to drive 8 show all Saudi Women celebrate their freedom to drive 1/8 A Saudi woman gestures while driving in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia Reuters 2/8 A Saudi woman drives at night in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia Reuters 3/8 Saudi women embrace as they celebrate the lift of the female driving ban in Saudi Arabia Reuters 4/8 A Saudi woman straps in Reuters 5/8 A Saudi woman drives to work in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters 6/8 Fadya Fahad is one of the first female drivers for Careem, a ride sharing company in Saudi Arabia Getty 7/8 A Saudi woman stops at a petrol station while driving to work in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters 8/8 A Saudi woman waits for coffee on the commute in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters 1/8 A Saudi woman gestures while driving in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia Reuters 2/8 A Saudi woman drives at night in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia Reuters 3/8 Saudi women embrace as they celebrate the lift of the female driving ban in Saudi Arabia Reuters 4/8 A Saudi woman straps in Reuters 5/8 A Saudi woman drives to work in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters 6/8 Fadya Fahad is one of the first female drivers for Careem, a ride sharing company in Saudi Arabia Getty 7/8 A Saudi woman stops at a petrol station while driving to work in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters 8/8 A Saudi woman waits for coffee on the commute in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Reuters
The moves, carried on the official Saudi Press Agency caught diplomats in Riyadh off guard. Both the Saudi and Canadian ambassadors were away on leave when it was made.
The kingdom will suspend educational exchange programmes with Canada and move Saudi scholarship recipients to other countries, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya reported on Monday. Neighbours and allies Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates said they stood with Riyadh, although they did not announce similar measures.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a loose association of the six Gulf Arab countries, Arab League and Palestine also supported Saudi policy. But Qatar, which is locked in a diplomatic rift with Saudi Arabia and other neighbours for over a year, said on its foreign ministry's official Twitter account that the GCC secretary general's statement did not represent its view of the situation.
Additional reporting by Reuters.
Saudi Arabia has given the Canadian ambassador to the kingdom 24 hours to leave after Ottawa criticised the arrest of women’s rights activists in the ultra-conservative country.
The Saudi foreign ministry also said it was freezing "all new business" between the two states and had withdrawn its own ambassador.
"Any other attempt to interfere with our internal affairs from Canada means that we are allowed to interfere in Canada’s internal affairs,” it declared in an extraordinary statement on Sunday night.
The spat comes after Canada’s diplomatic department tweeted about the detention of two more activists in the Middle Eastern country on Friday, the latest in a crackdown which began in May.
“Canada is gravely concerned about additional arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia, including Samar Badawi,” it posted. “We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful human rights activists."
Ms Badawi, arrested last week, is a lawyer and sister to blogger Raif Badawi, who was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in prison in 2012 for criticising clerics. His wife Ensaf Haidar and three children now live in Quebec.
Her whereabouts, and those of Nassima al-Sadah, are currently unknown. Several other prominent female activists remain in prison near Jeddah, where no charges have been brought against them.
In a statement following the latest arrests, Marie-Pier Baril, a spokesperson for Canadian foreign minister Chrystia Freeland, said: "Canada will always stand up for the protection of human rights, very much including women's rights, and freedom of expression around the world.
"Our government will never hesitate to promote these values and believes that this dialogue is critical to international diplomacy."
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Rebels will hand over territory they control in Quneitra and the neighbouring buffer zone with the Israeli-occupied Golan, a war monitor and a rebel AFP/Getty 18/51 20 July 2018 Men push a car past a flooded street in Ahmadabad, India. Hundreds of people have been rescued from flood affected areas in the past week as incessant rains continue to lash Gujarat state AP 19/51 19 July 2018 Arab lawmakers stand up in protest during a Knesset session in Jerusalem. Israel's parliament approved a controversial piece of legislation that defines the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people but which critics warn sidelines minorities AP 20/51 18 July 2018 The 12 boys and their soccer coach who were rescued from a flooded cave arrive for a news conference in the northern province of Chiang Rai, Thailand Reuters 21/51 17 July 2018 President Barack Obama delivers the 16th Nelson Mandela annual lecture, marking the centenary of the anti-apartheid leader's birth, in Johannesburg, South Africa Reuters 22/51 16 July 2018 French supporters celebrate on the Champs Elysees their team's victory after the World Cup 2018 final between France and Croatia EPA 23/51 15 July 2018 Hugo Lloris lifts the trophy after France beat Croatia 4-2 in the World Cup final in the Luzhniki Stadium in Russia AP 24/51 14 July 2018 Germany's Angelique Kerber beat seven-time champion US player Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final. Kerber won her first Wimbledon title PA 25/51 13 July 2018 Firefighters using fire helicopters fighting wildfires in Sordal in Setesdalen in the southern part of Norway. The fires are thought to be caused by lightning in the very dry landscape EPA 26/51 12 July 2018 The Syrian national flag rises in the midst of damaged buildings in Daraa-al-Balad an opposition-held part of the southern city of Daraa. Syria's army entered rebel-held parts of Daraa city, state media said, raising the national flag in the cradle of the uprising that sparked the country's seven-year war, following a deal for rebels to hand over their heavy weapons in Daraa al-Balad and other opposition-held parts of the city AFP 27/51 11 July 2018 US President Donald Trump and Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend a bilateral breakfast ahead of the NATO Summit in Brussels Reuters 28/51 10 July 2018 The last four Thai Navy SEALs come out safely after completing the rescue mission inside a cave where 12 boys and their soccer coach have been trapped since June 23, in Mae Sai, Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand. Thailand's navy SEALs say all 12 boys and their soccer coach have been rescued from a flooded cave in far northern Thailand, ending an ordeal that lasted more than two weeks Royal Thai Navy via AP 29/51 9 July 2018 Indonesia worker and firefighters try to extinguish a fire on fishing boats at Benoa harbour in Denpasar, on Indonesia's resort island of Bali. A massive fire laid waste to dozens of boats at a Bali port as firefighters battled to bring the dramatic blaze under control Getty 30/51 8 July 2018 Russia's football team are greeted celebrated by fans during a visit at the Moscow's fan zone after they were knocked out of the World Cup in their quarter final match against Croatia on penalties Getty 31/51 7 July 2018 Residents look over the flooded town by heavy rain in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, western Japan. Heavy rainfall killed 47 people, missing more than 49 people and five others in serious condition in southwestern and western Japan, public television reported on 07 July 2018. Japan Meteorological Agency has warned record rainfall on 06 July for flooding, mudslides in southwestern and western Japan. In nine prefectures in western and southwestern Japan, authorities issued evacuation orders to more than one million of people in southwestern and western Japan EPA 32/51 6 July 2018 An honour guard hold up a picture of Samarn Kunan, 38, a former member of Thailand's elite navy SEAL unit who died working to save 12 boys and their soccer coach trapped inside a flooded cave, at an airport in Rayong province, Thailand Reuters 33/51 5 July 2018 The International Space Station, center, passes in front of the Moon in its Earth orbit as photographed from Salgotarjan, Hungary MTI via AP 34/51 4 July 2018 Former Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak (C) arrives at Kuala Lumpur High Court in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak appeared in court to face graft charges linked to the the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal EPA 35/51 3 July 2018 Rescue workers come out from the Tham Luang cave complex, as members of under-16 soccer team and their coach have been found alive according to a local media's report, in the northern province of Chiang Rai, Thailand Reuters 36/51 2 July 2018 Firefighters scramble to control flames surrounding a fire truck as the Pawnee fire jumps across highway 20 near Clearlake Oaks, California Getty 37/51 1 July 2018 Presidential candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador greets supporters as he arrives at a polling station during the presidential election in Mexico City Reuters 38/51 30 June 2018 North Korea leader Kim Jong Un inspects Unit 1524 of the Korean People's Army (KPA) KCNA via Reuters 39/51 29 June 2018 Mount Agung's crater glows red from the lava as it spews volcanic smoke on Bali Island. The Indonesian tourist island closed its international airport, stranding thousands of travelers, as the Mount Agung volcano gushed a 2,500-meter (8,200-feet) column of ash and smoke AP 40/51 28 June 2018 The remains of market stalls smoulder after a fire swept through a marketplace in Nairobi, Kenya. Several people have died in the fire and about 70 are receiving hospital treatment, with rescue teams left searching through the scene AP 41/51 27 June 2018 Smoke rises in the rebel-held town of Nawa in southern Syria during airstrikes by Syrian regime forces. Syria's army launched an assault on the flashpoint southern city of Daraa state media said, after a week of deadly bombardment on the nearby countryside caused mass displacement. Government forces have set their sights on retaking the south of the country, a strategic area that borders Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights Getty 42/51 26 June 2018 French President Emmanuel Macron greets Pope Francis at the end of a private audience at the Vatican Getty 43/51 25 June 2018 The frame of an abandoned Peugeot 404 rests in Niger's Tenere desert region of the south central Sahara on Sunday, June 3, 2018. Once a well-worn roadway for overlander tourists, the highway 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) are a favored path for migrants heading north in hopes of a better life and more recently thousands who are being expelled south from Algeria AP 44/51 24 June 2018 Saudi women celebrate after they drove their cars in Al Khobar after the law allowing women to drive took effect. Saudi Arabia will allow women to drive from June 24, ending the world's only ban on female motorists Reuters 45/51 23 June 2018 People gather as the injured are helped by medics at the scene of an explosion during a rally to support the country's new reformist prime minister Abiy Ahmed in Meskel Square in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Reports say the blast occurred shortly after he addressed thousands of his supporters. He then spoke to the crowd afterwards, saying a people had been killed EPA 46/51 22 June 2018 Participants of the Dark Mofo Nude Solstice Swim are seen in the River Derwent at dawn, in Hobart, Australia Reuters 47/51 21 June 2018 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participates in a mass yoga session along with other practitioners to mark International Yoga Day at the Forest Research Institute (FRI) in Dehradun. Tens of thousands of yoga practitioners worldwide on June 21 are expected to celebrate the fourth annual International Yoga Day, first proposed by the Indian PM in 2014 to the UN General Assembly and adopted unanimously Getty 48/51 20 June 2018 A woman and child are told they will have to wait before crossing the US border as confusion sets in following the Trump administration's "zero tolerance" policy on immigration Getty 49/51 19 June 2018 People wave a banner with a picture of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a gathering of supporters of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Istanbul, Turkey,. Turkish President Erdogan announced on 18 April that Turkey will hold snap presidential and parliamentary elections on 24 June 2018, after elections were scheduled to be held in November 2019 EPA 50/51 18 June 2018 Residents pass by a temple gate collapsed by an earthquake in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture, western Japan. The earthquake, which struck western Japan, killed three people and injured more than 50 EPA 51/51
The announcement caught Riyadh's diplomatic community off guard, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters, noting that both the Saudi and Canadian ambassadors were away on leave when it was made.
Saudi Arabia ended its almost 30-year-old ban on women driving in June. The huge leap forward for women's rights in the country was marred, however, by a spate of arrests of civil society activists, which analysts said was intended as a signal that only King Salman and his powerful son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, would decide the pace of modernisation in the country.
It was not immediately clear on Monday what new Saudi-Canada business would be affected by the announced freeze but trade between the two nations reached $3 billion (£2.3 billion) in 2016, according to the Press Association, with tanks among Canada’s top exports to the kingdom and oil among its biggest imports.
Saudi neighbour and ally Bahrain said it supported Riyadh's decision, but it was not immediately clear whether it would also sever business ties with Canada.
Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 encompasses a host of social and economic reforms which have been unveiled since Mohammed bin Salman was appointed crown prince by his father last June. The moves are designed to eventually wean the kingdom off dependence on oil.
The 32-year-old has reined in the power of the country's notorious religious police, reopened cinemas and promised a return to a more “moderate” Islam.
Critics have said the reforms are a carrot for the Saudi public ahead of the economic hardship they inevitably face in future and point out the decrees do not go as far as addressing the kingdom’s strict laws on freedom of expression, assembly, or the liberal use of capital punishment.
“Canadian foreign minister Freeland’s tweet calling for women’s rights activists to be released was by no means interference in Saudi Arabia’s internal affairs. It was a defence of universal human rights agreed to globally and binding on Saudi Arabia,” Middle East Director of Campaigns at Amnesty International, Samah Hadid, told The Independent.
“Saudi Arabia’s response should be to end its crackdown on human rights activists and free the women human rights defenders and all other prisoners of conscience, not to lash out with punitive diplomatic and trade sanctions.
“Now is the time for other governments, like the UK and US to join Canada in increasing the pressure for genuine, lasting human rights reforms in Saudi Arabia.”
The kingdom has also been embroiled in diplomatic rows with Germany and Sweden in recent years after official criticism of its foreign policy and human rights record.
News agencies contributed to this report
