Cairo January 2, 2013

 ANHRI Denounces the Saudi police arrest to the correspondent of the British Channel, SkyNews, after he covered the trail of the two activists Abdullah El-Hamed and Mohamed El-Qahtani.

 The security forces have arrested “Abdul Mohsen El-Qabani”, Skynews correspondent and “Mohamed El-Kathery”, the cameraman for four hours in El-Morab’ police station in the middle of Riyadh. They were arrested during covering the last hearing of the trial of the two activists, which held on December 29, 2012, as “Abdul Mohsen El-Qabani” was preparing a press report related to the trial outside the criminal court in Riyadh.

 The Saudi-Police said that the arrest was to be assure of the car that “Abdul Mohsen El-Qabani” and his companion were driving. The police allegedly said that the car was shaded and carrying the slogan of the ministry of culture and information, by the examining the documents of the car, it was declared that it was rented and not affiliated to the ministry of culture and information in addition to the driver did not have any document to prove his right to drive it,

 The correspondent denied such statements, as he said that the car wasn’t shaded and he has the right to officially drive it in Saudi-Arabia and in the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf countries. He added that the slogan of the ministry of culture and information was on the car since the pilgrim and the main reason for arresting him was covering the trial. Moreover the police asked him for the permits to attend the trial coverage which contradicts with the principle of publicly trial.

ANHRI said that “Saudi authorities violations against the various types of the freedoms have reached its extent recently. The regime violations included all the freedoms, peaceful demonstrations, activists who call for democracy and opinion-maker, which requires a prompt intervention from the various stakeholders of freedoms and democracy; if the these parties desire to change its position, which reached the extent of collusion, from the violations of the Saudi-regime”.

ANHRI called on the international and regional foundations to practice more pressures on the Saudi regime to respect the freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful demonstration”.

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