Saudi Arabia has condemned the call by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, for clarifications regarding the extrajudicial killings of migrants at its borders during his opening speech at the 54th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Abdulmohsen bin Khothialah, the Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia's mission in Geneva, considered during discussions on the second item of the session on September 13, 2023, that the information relied upon by the Commissioner was based on unreliable sources that his country had previously denied.
The European Saudi Organization notes that Saudi Arabia repeatedly denies information and attacks critics in international forums. Although reports about the killing of migrants on the border were documented with videos and photos, the Saudi government did not investigate.
In addition to denying the facts, the Saudi delegate promoted positive steps to promote and protect human rights in several areas, including water problems, efforts to combat climate change, and the launch of contributions, including Green Saudi Arabia and the Green Middle East. This comes as reports and research are increasing that confirm Saudi Arabia's responsibility for a large percentage of emissions that lead to climate change.
The ambassador referred to the solutions that Saudi Arabia is working on for the housing crisis through Vision 2030 initiatives, as he said that the percentage of families owning homes has reached 60% over the past years. This statement comes as Saudi Arabia's practices led to the displacement of thousands of residents from their homes through forced evictions in different regions of the country.
ESOHR believes that the ambassador's speech confirms Saudi Arabia's use of the Human Rights Council and United Nations mechanisms to wash its image by talking about major projects, ignoring all reports and information about violations, and evading accountability. ESOHR believes that the denunciation of the High Commissioner’s claim shows the lack of any intention to seriously investigate serious violations including the arbitrary killing of migrants.