Saudi Arabia: Transparent Monitoring of Human Rights Situation

A general view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AFP)
A general view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AFP)
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Saudi Arabia: Transparent Monitoring of Human Rights Situation

A general view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AFP)
A general view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (AFP)

The Saudi Human Rights Commission (HRC) issued a detailed monitoring of the human rights situation in the various regions of the Kingdom, which included transparent documentation of cases of violations.

The report registered 164 cases of human rights violations in various regions over the past year, the HRC spokesperson said in a statement. Those included criminal justice, protection from abuse, health, social care, education, work, protection from human trafficking, identity and nationality, in addition to various other cases.

Saudi Arabia has launched several initiatives aimed at promoting and protecting human rights, including the HRC International Communication Program.

The Kingdom had taken a number of remarkable reform decisions, including abolishing the death penalty against minors and cancelling the punishment of flogging and replacing it with imprisonment or a fine or both, or alternative penalties such as providing social services.



Syria’s Leader Meets with Bahraini Diplomatic Delegation

The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
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Syria’s Leader Meets with Bahraini Diplomatic Delegation

The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)
The leader of Syria's new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa meets Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif Al-Zayani in Damascus, Syria, January 8, 2025. (Bahrain News Agency/Handout via Reuters)

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa received a delegation from Bahrain on Wednesday and met with the Bahraini foreign minister, state media reported.

The visit was the latest in a flurry of diplomatic overtures by Arab countries to Syria’s new leaders after they overthrew former President Bashar al-Assad in a lightning rebel offensive.

Like other Gulf countries, Bahrain had cut off diplomatic ties with Syria under Assad’s rule during the Syrian civil war, but it reopened its embassy in Damascus in 2018 and gradually restored ties with the Assad government.

Bahrain is the current head of the Arab summit, and days after Assad’s ouster it had sent a message to al-Sharaa offering its cooperation with the new authorities and saying, “We look forward to Syria regaining its authentic role in the Arab League.”