(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - In a statement read on state television, the Saudi Interior Ministry announced the arrest orders on Monday, saying that the 23 men were responsible for recent anti-regime protests. It also accuses the protesters of what it calls serving the agenda of a foreign power.
Inspired by the revolutions across the Arab world, protests in eastern region began in early 2011. The protesters are demanding freedom and the release of prisoners. In November, the regime forces opened fire on thousands of protesters in the town of Qatif, killing at least five of them.
We have conducted an interview with Maher Salloum, a Human Rights activist in Beirut, to further explore the issue. What follows is the transcription of the interview:
Q: We are seeing the protests and violence escalating in Saudi Arabia. However, we are not seeing any help from the international community or possibly the US. Why do you think that is?
Salloum: Usually the US has double standard agenda in its foreign policy and according to its strategic interest with Saudi Arabia, it would like to cover any damage that can hurt the Saudi systems or the kingdom's system. Now speaking of human rights, the US should be more involved actually when speaking about human rights in the [Persian] Gulf or in the Middle East and specifically regarding the Arab spring today.
In this matter, I mean, the Americans and the West are too short of bringing up subjects such as human rights in Qatif area and east provinces of Saudi Arabia.
Q: Mr. Salloum, we are seeing that these protests were risen in the early 2011 protest arising in the Arab spring. Where do you see it going three months down the line? For example, in the future dateline, where do you see the wave of protests? Will they continue to get worse or is it going to dwindle down in Saudi Arabia?
Salloum: Thank you for the question. I believe that the system insists on weaving the human rights value and the human rights or the basic human rights of the people in Saudi Arabia or in major kingdoms actually such as kingdom of Bahrain also and the oppositionists there.
I mean, this will elevate actually as a snowball and will elevate itself by itself and this will grow, as oppositionists are moving ahead and they are growing by numbers; they are outnumbering all numbers actually in the Middle East so far.
In Saudi Arabia and in Bahrain, as oppositionists, they will grow eventually and they will hurt the system as vis-?-vis human rights or corruption cases, brutality, cracking down on people in prisons politically arrested people and so forth. So the whole situation cannot be tolerated actually by the oppositionists themselves and more international media should be covering or monitoring such events as well as other events such as in Syria or in Libya or in Egypt or in Tunisia accordingly.
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