‘Biden’s Stance Made MBS More Arrogant’

Think Tank: Saudi Abuses, War Crimes Go Unchecked

Date: 10 January 2023 - 21:32

News ID: ۱۱۱۱۵۶

WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – The U.S. will never penalize its Saudi client for anything, and there are never any practical consequences for the kingdom’s war crimes and abuses, says an American think tank.

Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia pressured the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC Plus) in October to cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day, the U.S. administration is dropping its threats against the kingdom, Responsible Statecraft said in an article.

“The White House’s anger over the cut had already cooled shortly after the midterm elections, and since then the administration has been only too quick to cater to Saudi requests,” it added.

The article also explained that the U.S. administration even lobbied against the new Yemen war powers resolution which could have ended Washington’s support for the Saudi-led coalition’s devastating war in Yemen.

“Under [U.S. president Joe] Biden, the U.S. not only doesn’t use its leverage to pressure Saudi Arabia to change its behavior, but it also applies pressure on members of Congress to satisfy the Saudis,” it said, adding that, “the U.S. reliably gives in to Saudi pressure and does nothing to respond even when their government acts directly against U.S. interests.”

It further criticized the U.S.’s increasing military cooperation with Saudi Arabia, saying that the U.S. must correct its “overinvestment of resources in the Middle East” and scale back its “military involvement in the region.”

‘Appalling Rights Record

Worse Under MbS’

Meanwhile, a prominent Saudi opposition figure says the scale of human rights violations in the Persian Gulf kingdom have dramatically risen up ever since Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) took the helm of state affairs in 2017, and the vicious crackdown against dissidents now expands to their families and close relatives.

Hamza al-Shakhouri, a leader of the Arabian Peninsula opposition bloc, said the Riyadh regime has long been violating human rights and has an abysmal record of arbitrary detentions, unlawful imprisonment, various forms of physical and mental torture, discrimination, illegal executions and sham trials.

“The judiciary has no independence whatsoever in Saudi Arabia and the House of Saud exerts absolute control over the system of courts. The monarch has the final say in anything that the executive branch and the legislature come up with. Historically, this has always been the case since the kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932,” he told IRNA.

Shakhouri added, “The trend has, however, become much worse at present. Previously, Saudi authorities would not repress the families and relatives of political opponents and dissidents. But, repression now applies to the wives, children, parents, brothers and sisters of opposition figures.”