A UN official's allegations of human rights violations against Saudi Arabia have been firmly countered by Saudi journalists attending his press conference here last week. Ben Emmerson, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, alleged at the heated press conference that the Kingdom was using anti-terror laws to suppress free expression and ill-treat prisoners. He further accused the Kingdom of failing to carry out independent inquiries into the military actions in Yemen. Emmerson held the Arab Coalition responsible for 60 percent of casualties among civilians in Yemen in 2015. Countering these allegations, Al-Riyadh Arabic newspaper referred the UN envoy to the reports of a joint team set up to assess the casualties in Yemen. The reports had refuted 80 percent of the allegations against the coalition by UN and international organizations. The UN official was also asked why the United Nations had ignored the repeated demands of the Yemeni government, tribes, and the coalition to appoint UN observers in the Yemeni seaport of Hodeidah. He failed to give a convincing answer, saying his term of office as special rapporteur was coming to an end. He said, "The United Nations is a large and complex organization, and I am not here to defend any military or other operations authorized or not by the Security Council. My concern is transparency." The Saudi journalists also opposed Emmerson's claim that the Coalition was looking at Yemeni militias as a Shiite group. They explained to him that the Kingdom did not see the Houthis as a Shiite group, but as an outlawed militia, following neither Sunni nor Shiite beliefs. The journalists pointed out to the double standards adopted by the international body, citing the example of a Saudi, Homaidan Al-Turki, who was sentenced to 28 years in prison in the US for no crime. The UN had failed to raise his case, while it sought to defend the people detained in the Kingdom on terrorism charges. In response, Emerson said, "The UN follows certain procedures. Homaidan's family may write to us with a request to contact the US authorities to discuss the case." He refused to respond to questions on Iran. "I am visiting the Kingdom, not to talk about Iran." On the other hand, the UN Special Rapporteur praised the Kingdom's judicial system and the way it treated the families of the terror victims. This was a proactive and generous approach compared to other countries, making the Kingdom a global leader in the fight against terrorism and care for victims, he said. The Special Rapporteur also praised the transparent, constructive and cooperative manner in which the Saudi government initiated and facilitated this visit, as well as his previous visit in November 2016. These visits allowed for an open and frank dialogue. The Special Rapporteur also paid tribute to the heads of the government institutions he had met. They included the Justice Minister, the Chief of the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution, the Director General of the General Directorate of Public Investigation of the Ministry of the Interior, the President of the Specialized Criminal Court, and the Head of the Human Rights Commission. During these meetings, he and his team had the opportunity to exchange views on the Saudi government's counter-terrorism efforts. Emmerson and his team also held discussions with the director of the Al-Manar Police Station and the directors and staff of Al-Ha'ir and Dhaban prisons, as well as with officials of the Mohammed bin Naif Center for Counseling and Care. His team interviewed persons accused and convicted of terror-related crimes and met with representatives of families of victims of terrorist violence. Emmerson praised Saudi Arabia's rehabilitation work and the standards of its prisons as among the best in the world. Over the past three decades, Saudi Arabia had suffered from a series of terrorist attacks against military and civilian targets by Al-Qaeda and, more recently, Daesh and other groups. According to official records, 1,075 terrorist plots had been discovered in the country since 1987. The Special Rapporteur was informed that 844 of these plots had been carried out by the terrorists, many of which had devastating effects, and 231 of them had been thwarted. A total of 3,178 persons had been killed or injured during this period. The Special Rapporteur was also briefed on other security challenges and threats resulting from regional instability. The Saudi government was confronting these challenges every day, and was seeking to highlight its efforts in preventing terrorism and safeguarding human life. Saudi Arabia's commitment to international cooperation and its strong anti-money laundering system to stem the flow of funds to terrorists was also highlighted. Emmerson commended the efforts of the Kingdom and its institutions to alleviate the sufferings of terror victims through comprehensive programs, including financial, psychological, educational and employment support. He also praised the efforts of the Saudi government to prevent the spread of extremism.
