Saudi interrogators have reportedly tortured at least four of the women with electric shocks, and by whipping their thighs and sexually harassing and assaulting them, Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Thursday. The Saudi authorities have charged 11 people in the case, but it has denied American intelligence reports that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing. The 36 nations that backed the rebuke, among them Australia and Canada, urged Saudi Arabia to cooperate with an inquiry into the murder led by a United Nations expert, Agnès Callamard. She is to submit her findings to the Human Rights Council in June. Though the 28 members of the European Union spoke with one voice Thursday in the council to condemn Saudi human rights abuses, the bloc’s leaders in Brussels backed away from a proposal to blacklist the kingdom over accusations that it helps fund terrorism and launders money.

Source: New York Times March 07, 2019 21:31 UTC