Concern over arrests of Gulf nationals
The Arab Human Rights Committee has expressed concern over arbitrary arrests of Gulf nationals in many countries of the region.
The committee in a statement on Friday said some Gulf states were misusing the “fight against terrorism” to overlook illegal detentions of its citizens.
In an interview with Aljazeera, committee spokesman Dr Haitham Manaa said the paranoia over security was resulting in illegal arrests at border checkpoints.
“The Saudi authorities have arrested nationals from UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar,” he said.
Illegal arrest
“We now face a case involving a Kuwaiti national who has been arrested by the Saudi authorities without any legal justification and is now jailed in Hayel prison, but regrettably the Kuwaiti government has not yet objected,” Dr Manaa pointed out.
“As human rights activists, we hope that cooperation between Gulf states is based on mutual respect and guarantee of basic freedoms for the nationals,” he said.
“But what is going on now is security cooperation at the expense of the dignity of Gulf citizens.”
Dr Manaa also pointed out that more than 100 Saudi nationals are languishing in Syrian jails without access to lawyers.
“There are also many Gulf nationals in Saudi prisons and no one is allowed to intervene as their own countries have decided to keep silent,” he said.