Qatar once again condemns Saudi Arabia’s issuance of unilateral ‘terror lists’

For more than one and a half years now, Qatar has been subjected to an illegal siege by four neighbouring countries.

One of the first things Saudi Arabia did was issue unilateral ‘terrorism lists’ featuring Qatari individuals and organisations, under false pretences.

Qatar has always maintained that the practice violated international law and the United Nations Charter. The country reiterated its position during the 40th session of the Human Rights Council, on item three concerning the protection of human rights in the context of counter-terrorism.

The country’s position was read out by Abdullah Al Suwaidi, Qatar’s Second Secretary of the Permanent Mission to the United Nations, in Geneva, according to Gulf Times.

Discussing the report of Ben Emmerson, UN’s Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism, on his visit to Saudi Arabia in 2017, Al Suwaidi said Qatar wanted to express its alarm at the loose interpretation of terrorism adopted by the country in question.

In 2017, Ben Emmerson, at the end of his five-day mission to Saudi Arabia, had said the country must stop using counter-terrorism legislation against people peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly.

Saying that Saudi laws on terrorism do not comply with international standards, he urged an end to the prosecution of people for merely expressing non-violent views.

In this regard, Al Suwaidi said these unilateral ‘terrorism lists’ included charitable organisations that have co-operation agreements with the United Nations and other international organisations, reported Gulf Times.

Al Suwaidi condemned the use of these ‘terrorism lists’ as a tool of political and economic pressure, which represents a clear violation of human rights and the freedoms of the people mentioned in the lists.

He noted that the lists also limited the ability of those organisations, in terms of carrying out their charitable and humanitarian activities, particularly in developing countries.

He wondered how useful such unilateral ‘terrorism lists’ could be in limiting the efforts of these organisations in protecting human rights and providing humanitarian aid.

--

Make sure to check out our social media to keep track of the latest content.

Instagram - @qatarliving

Twitter - @qatarliving

Facebook - Qatar Living

Cover Image Credit: File