Appointment of First Saudi Female Ambassador to the US is a Further Attempt to Distract from Rights Abuses

On 23 February 2019, Saudi Arabia appointed its first ever female ambassador, Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud. She will serve as the ambassador to the United States (US). She is a member of the royal family, and has been widely known for her advocacy work around women’s rights in the kingdom. She succeeds Prince[…]

Continued Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia and UAE Undermine Congressional Authority

In May 2019, the Trump Administration approved a new shipment of arms to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) valued at $8 billion, as part of an ‘emergency’ sale meant to bolster regional allies and counter regional aggression. By tagging the sales as for an ‘emergency’ the administration is able to avoid Congressional[…]

US State Department Cites Bahrain’s Political Repression as Major Risk Factor for Instability

The Bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism (CT) at the United States (US) Department of State released its Country Reports on Terrorism for 2017 yesterday, 19 September 2018. While the Bahrain country report again fails to address how key tenets of the kingdom’s anti-terror framework violate international law and are used to suppress nonviolent[…]

The US and UK continue to supply arms to the Saudi-UAE coalition despite international condemnation

The crisis in Yemen has worsened with the involvement, since 2015, of the Saudi Arabia/United Arab Emirates (UAE)-led coalition, which has conducted thousands of airstrikes against the rebel Houthi movement as well as civilian infrastructure. The coalition’s efforts are facilitated by weapons manufactured in Western countries like the United States (US), which have served to[…]

US-Saudi Cooperation is Cause for Concern as US Deepens its Role in Yemen Conflict

The United States (US) has secretly had at least a dozen Green Beret troops on the ground in Saudi Arabia, near the border with Yemen, since the end of 2017. This comes as something of a surprise given the Pentagon’s repeated statements stressing that American military involvement in the conflict in Yemen was solely limited[…]