Speaking at a meeting of the GCC Ministerial Council, Prince Saud called on GCC countries to “to use their resources to … enable the Syrian people to defend themselves against the murderous and destructive machine of the government.”
“The killing and torture of civilians has continued,” said the minister, adding that the GCC must find a “quick solution to this crisis.”
The prince denounced the regime’s oppressive practices against its people. “We have started losing hope in finding a solution for the Syria crisis within the framework of the UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan’s peace plan,” he said.
He expressed the hope that Russia, being an influential international player, would contribute to a regime change.
On Iran’s nuclear program, he said it has increased threats to the Gulf region and urged Tehran to cooperate with world powers to defuse tension. “For sure, the Iranian nuclear program has escalated the threat level in the region … So it is dangerous…,” he told reporters.
“We hope Iran, with all kinds of threats coming from it, changes its policy to protect a region that is Iran’s (as well). I can not imagine Iran becoming the reason for the destruction of this region because it will be the biggest loser.”
Talks last month between Iran and six world powers over its nuclear ambitions ended without an agreement but the sides decided to reconvene in Moscow on June 18-19 in another effort to bridge the longstanding dispute.
"This requires greater cooperation from Iran with the international group," Prince Saud said. "We hope that Iran stops its nuclear program and reassures the region’s states."
Prince Saud also criticized Iran over what he called its occupation of three strategic Gulf islands that are also claimed by the United Arab Emirates. "There is a big crisis now in the Gulf caused by Iran’s occupation of the UAE islands and … threats in general," he said.
Prince Saud also called on GCC member states to provide urgently needed economic aid to Yemen, where a yearlong uprising had plunged the already impoverished nation into a dire humanitarian crisis. Saudi Arabia has already pledged $ 3.2 billion in financial assistance to Yemen, a commitment the Kingdom made at a Friends of Yemen meeting in Riyadh last month.
10 new cases of torture filed against Bahrain cops
Khaleej Times: Ten new mistreatment and torture cases against Bahraini policemen were received in May by the Public Prosecution.
The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) at the Public Prosecution is currently investigating 37 direct complaints in addition to 102 cases which had been referred in April by the Ministry of Interior and the National Security Agency.
The unit was assigned such cases after the government’s decision to refer torture and maltreatment cases against policemen from the military to civil courts.
“Special investigators continue to record statements of complainants and finished listening to 18 complainants in addition to 11 witnesses and that reliant upon these investigations the unit interrogated 8 accused persons and informed them about charges levelled against them,” SIU head Nawaf Abdullah Hamza said.
The Public Prosecution referred to court last weekend 6 cases in the aftermath of intensive investigations carried out by the SIU. The 6 shall appear before court for trial in the next few weeks.
The Public Prosecution re-emphasises that all citizens have the right to directly submit their applications to the unit in the premises of the Public Prosecution and accentuated that the unit continues to receive such sort of complaints in order to take initial actions such as a legal medical checkup for the complainant in compliance with the 12th Article of the international Anti-Torture Convention, the Istanbul Protocol for Fact-finding, documentation of torture and any other sort of harsh, inhumane or abusive treatment, then the Criminal Prosecution refers the papers to the unit for taking the necessary actions.
