Saudi Arabia abducted missing lawyer, activist in Switzerland

Saudi authorities kidnapped a Saudi lawyer and an activist from their residence in the Switzerland city of Geneva, the rights group Prisoners of Conscience has revealed.

Saudi lawyer Hassan Al-Omari was abducted by authorities in October 2017 and Hassan Al-Kanani in March this year with Amnesty International accusing Saudi of being behind the Al-Omari’s disappearance.

The rights group said a prince had also disappeared from Geneva prior to Al-Omari with authorities in Switzerland having no information about his whereabouts.

On 15 October 2018, Saudi Prince Khalid Bin Farhan Al-Saud, who was based in Germany at the time, accused his country of trying to kidnap him. His revelation came just two weeks after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in the Turkish city of Istanbul.

Over the past two years, hundreds of activists and human rights advocators have been arrested in Saudi Arabia.

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