outcry from the NGO side

A controversial visit. The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, arrived in France on Wednesday June 14 for an official visit during which he will meet with President Emmanuel Macron, the Royal Palace announced. The leader of the rich oil kingdom will also take part in the Summit for a new global financial pact, organized on the 22nd and 23rd in Paris. He must also attend a ceremony scheduled for June 19 in the French capital to formalize Saudi Arabia’s candidacy to host the 2030 World Expo, according to the same source.

>> Visit of Mohammed ben Salmane in France: the seduction operation of the Saudi crown prince

Thus, the time when Mohamed Ben Salman was described as “pariah” by Joe Biden, after the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, seems a long way off. NGOs denounce this official trip, a second less than a year in France, while the human rights situation is deteriorating in the kingdom.

“196 executions in 2022”

“We restore the image of someone who absolutely does not deserve it“, thus protests Agnès Callamard, world secretary general of Amnesty International. And to specify that “President [Emmanuel] Macron makes himself the main architect of the rehabilitation of Mohammed Bin Salman; he had already done it for three or four years“. For his part, Jean-Claude Samouiller, president of Amnesty France, believes that Emmanuel Macron should discuss the human rights situation during his lunch with MBS. “Certainly, we have to do business, but Emmanuel Macron must talk about human rights in Saudi Arabia, which has a frightening record in terms of the death penalty with 196 executions in 2022.“A speech that has little chance of being heard by the strong man of Arabia, today essential on the international scene.

MBS is now being courted by world leaders for its petrodollars, regrets Ahmed Benchemsi of Human Rights Watch. “The bin Salman regime spends billions and billions of dollars to improve its image at all levels. They organize sumptuous concerts with the biggest international stars. They buy footballers like Ronaldo or Benzema. Western governments are enticed by incoming contracts.”

In its annual report on the death penalty, published in mid-May, Amnesty International denounced an explosion in the number of executions in Saudi Arabia. According to the NGO, 196 people were executed in the kingdom in 2022, compared to 65 in 2021.