Turning a Blind Eye on Human Rights Abuse | 4 comments (4 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

The West and Human Rights (none / 0)

News reports suggest Saudi Arabia about to change story on disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi and claim accidental death after a "botched interrogation" by "rogue agents". The Western Military Industrial Complex will smile and continue delivery of most lethal war weaponry to the Sunni Gulf States.

Riyadh, Arab allies threaten retaliation, but is their bark worse than their bite? | France24 |
When Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman - known by his initials, MbS - visited Britain and the US earlier this year, the pre-trip barrage of billboards, media interviews and pro-Saudi news coverage was so intense, wags promptly dubbed the young heir to the Saudi throne, "the prince of PR".
But in the stunned days following the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi PR machinery was noticeably slow off the blocks as accusations of Riyadh's responsibility for the dissident journalist's suspected murder began to mount.
That changed by Monday, October 15, when the oil-rich Gulf kingdom launched a concerted pushback following a weekend that saw the riyal fall to a two-year low and a growing list of top CEOs pulling out of an upcoming Saudi investment conference nicknamed "Davos in the Desert".

"Enough is enough" -- front page of @Saudi_Gazette on Khashoggi crisis pic.twitter.com/GDBzsBpg7S
— Mohamad Bazzi (@BazziNYU) October 15, 2018
The opening salvos were fired on the front pages of Saudi English-language newspapers, with Monday's edition of the "Saudi Gazette" proclaiming, "Enough is Enough" with a banner headline followed by the subhead, "Kingdom rejects threats to undermine it, vows to respond with tougher action." The "Arab News" daily echoed the tough line, promising, "Saudi Arabia will not be bullied: Arab, Muslim countries stand by Kingdom against false allegations and intimidation."
The headlines followed a statement released Sunday that noted, "The Kingdom appreciates the brothers' stand in the face of the campaign of false allegations and falsehoods."
The term "Arab brothers" is frequently derided across a region riddled by diplomatic spats and betrayals - including a failure to put up a muscular, united front on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the chronic lack of unity within the 22-member Arab League.