Human Rights Watch condemned the arrest of the granddaughter of the founding king of Saudi Arabia, Princess Basma Bint Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and called on a European Parliament member to release Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud, who has been detained since the beginning of this year.
The British Guardian newspaper quoted Human Rights Watch as saying that the arrest of Princess Basma comes in the context of the systematic repression practiced by Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman to all those who disagree with him, especially women.
She added that during the reign of bin Salman, opponents are silenced without mercy, and no one is outside the limits of his authority, and the area of the opposition has shrunk dramatically, so that things that Saudi Arabia has not previously undertaken will happen.
Urgent appeal
The Princess Basma's Twitter account posted an urgent appeal to demand her release following her "arbitrary" arrest in Saudi Arabia last year.
In her appeal, Princess Basma went to her uncle, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and her cousin, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, noting that she is currently in Al-Hayer prison, that her health condition is very deteriorating and may lead to her death, and that she did not receive any medical care.
| Detained Saudi Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz (right) with Muhammad bin Salman (social media) |
Princess Basma asked whether the leadership had known that she was in prison so far with her daughter Sohd al-Sharif, and asked the king and his crown prince to release her and provide her with treatment.
Media reports had reported the arrest of Princess Basma in February 2019, as she was famous for her articles from Europe regarding the conditions of women in Saudi Arabia and the arrests of princes and men and demanded to stop the Yemen war and political reforms, and she returned to the Kingdom in 2016 after being mediated by the Crown Prince at that time Her cousin, Prince Muhammad bin Nayef.
On the other hand, the European Union , MP Mark Trabella, called on the Saudi authorities to release Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Muhammad Al Saud, who was arrested along with his father in January 2018, without charge. In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Trabella said that Prince Salman was forcibly transferred on March 27 to an unknown location by officers in civilian clothes.
Trappila said that the European Union’s foreign policy chief had contacted Saudi officials more than once and there was constant follow-up, but there was no development in this context.
He expressed the union's concern about the prince's position given his transfer to a place far from Riyadh and accusations against him without undergoing any trial, adding that they are talking about the matter in the context of human rights and have not received any response from the Saudi authorities until the present moment.
Trabella affirmed that they will continue to ask questions and hope that the Kingdom will respond to these calls, especially with the approaching month of Ramadan, which they hope will open the door to a new beginning.