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Arab News
32 minutes ago
- Arab News
Letter to the Editor: In response to Dr. Dania Khatib's column (July 10, 2025)
Ukraine stands for freedom of speech and independent media. However, it is with a bitter regret that we noted the recent publication of an op-ed by Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib, who suggested to the public several observations which we believe are inaccurate and risk misleading readers on fundamental issues. The publication itself and a range of narratives outlined therein require a response from the Ukrainian side. Ukraine profoundly appreciates our rich and consistently growing partnership with Saudi Arabia in line with the Kingdom's unwavering commitment, in particular, to international law, its rules and fundamental principles. In this context, it would be relevant to make several points thus dispelling Dr. Dania Khatib's publication through the prism of our bilateral partnership with undisputable facts to set the record straight. First of all, the Russian military aggression against Ukraine in no way can be considered as a legitimate deterrence. We believe that invading an independent state, partly occupying sovereign territories, killing peaceful civilians and destroying domestic economies represent a blatant and outrageous violation of the UN Charter's provisions and international law, which all the UN member states are obliged to respect. It would be appropriate to recall all the UN resolutions having been adopted since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and in the period 2022-2024. None of the 140 countries that unanimously deplored Russian violations ever talked of this so-called 'deterrence.' Secondly, it is vital for me to firmly reject the notion that Ukraine is 'destroyed' or on the verge of collapse, as well as the allegation that a sovereign state being subject to external pressures as a weaker part of the war leading to a hypothetical surrender. Despite the struggles posed against Ukraine, our state remains steadfast in its pursuit of a prosperous future. To demonstrate our resilience, it is useful to remember the crystal clear figures of our economic partnership with the Kingdom during the time of the full-scale aggression. When bilateral trade turnover grows by 17 percent, this speaks for itself not of a country being destroyed but a determined nation committed to resist. We have a joint ambition to develop partnership into the future, which is codified in the joint statement issued after the official visit of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to the Kingdom in March 2025. The reinvigoration of the Ukrainian-Saudi Joint Business Council of chambers of commerce and industry, as well as dynamic high-level exchanges between Ukrainian and Saudi companies, demonstrate the high pace of our cooperation. Moreover, we have retained our responsibility as a key food security guarantor in the world by widely supplying wheat and corn to the countries affected. All these facts do not describe the country in ruin. On the contrary, Ukraine is simultaneously implementing national priority interests and sympathetically meeting the dire needs of struggling countries. Far from the term 'destroyed,' Ukraine refused to fall a victim of Russian aggression but displayed incredible tenacity to defend its people and land. The final point is around criticism of weak and unreliable West. We want to make it clear: Ukraine stands against aggression with consistent support of our strategic partner the United States and the broad international coalition of the West. Their political support, economic and security assistance empowered Ukraine to withstand all brutalities of the war. The unity we have seen — politically, economically and militarily — is unprecedented and cannot be underestimated. Ukraine is confident in the West and grateful to all who extend us a hand of help in time of a challenge. Similarly, the humanitarian assistance of the Kingdom plays a pivotal role in protecting our civilians from the consequences of the Russian invasion. The bottom line is that, with all due respect, a contributing columnist may attempt to offer her fresh look on a complex set of issues; however, one principle must persist to be imperative: rock-solid facts, in my opinion, should not be misinterpreted and distorted in a way that undermines the foundations of international law, sovereign state vital national interests and much valuable partnerships across the globe that Ukraine treasures so much. Anatolii Petrenko Ambassador of Ukraine to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
UN-backed Team Focusing on Human Rights in Palestinian Areas Announce Resignations
A team of three independent experts working for the UN's top human rights body with a focus on Israel and Palestinian areas say they are resigning, citing personal reasons and a need for change, in the panel's first such group resignation. The resignations, announced Monday by the UN-backed Human Rights Council that set up the team, come as violence continues in Palestinian areas with few signs of letup in the Israeli military campaign against Hamas and other militants behind the Oct. 7 attacks. The Israeli government has repeatedly criticized the panel of experts, known as the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, and denied their repeated requests to travel to the region or otherwise cooperate with the team, The AP news reported. Council spokesman Pascal Sim said the move marked the first joint resignations of Commission of Inquiry members since the council was founded in 2006. The team said in a statement that the resignations had 'absolutely nothing to do with any external event or pressure," while also saying they provided a good opportunity to reconstitute the panel. Navi Pillay, 83, a former UN human rights chief who has led the commission for the last four years, said in a letter to the council president that she was resigning effective Nov. 3 because of 'age, medical issues and the weight of several other commitments.' In an interview, Pillay rejected accusations from critics who accused her of antisemitism or turning a blind eye to the Hamas attacks. She recalled how she worked closely with some Jewish lawyers in the fight against apartheid in her native South Africa and was invited to Israel as the UN rights chief from 2008 to 2014. "Name-calling is not affecting me in any way,' she said by phone. 'We have striven to remain independent. That's what we are. We're an independent panel. We don't take sides ... We look at the evidence and see the direction it's taking us.' 'People who accuse us of being anti-Semitic ... they twist the facts, they invent facts, falsify facts. I would like to see them challenge the report: Which of the facts that we have set out are incorrect?' she said. Her commission condemned the Oct. 7 attacks three days afterward in a news release that said at the time that reports "that armed groups from Gaza have gunned down hundreds of unarmed civilians are abhorrent and cannot be tolerated. Taking civilian hostages and using civilians as human shields are war crimes.' She expressed regret that Israel didn't allow the commission access to Israel or Palestinian areas, saying "I feel that's an injustice to Israeli Jews because we're not taking on board their opinion or what they're saying.' Pillay said she had been recently diagnosed with low platelet count and her condition has restricted her ability to travel. Her team said it wanted to give the rights council's president — currently Ambassador Jürg Lauber of Switzerland — the ability to pick new members. Team member Chris Sidoti said Pillay's retirement marked 'an appropriate time to re-constitute the commission.' The third member, Miloon Kothari, did not provide his reasons in a letter announcing his resignation effective 0ct. 31. Neither the independent experts nor the council have any power over countries, but aim to spotlight rights abuses and collect information about suspected perpetrators that could be used by the International Criminal Court or other courts focusing on international justice. The letters were sent to the council president last week but only became public Monday. Last week, the US government announced sanctions against another independent expert mandated by the council, Francesca Albanese, who has also focused on Israel and the Palestinians. Albanese has accused Israel of genocide against the Palestinians, a claim Israel has denied. Albanese said in an interview last week with The Associated Press that she was shocked by the US decision. She has not resigned.
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
EU Sanctions Iranian Individuals Accused of Targeting Dissidents
The EU has imposed sanctions on eight people and one entity responsible for the targeting of Iranian dissidents for assassination on behalf of Iran's government, the European Council said in a statement on Tuesday. The sanctions, over what it called "serious human rights violations" and "transnational repression", included asset freezes and travel bans, the council said. The Council listed the Zindashti Network, which it said was a criminal group uconnected to the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security that has carried out numerous acts of transnational repression, including assassinations of Iranian dissidents, Reuters reported. It also included the Zindashti Network's boss Naji Ibrahim Sharifi-Zindashti - who it said was an Iranian narcotics trafficker and organised crime boss - and some of his associates. Zindashti and his network have previously been sanctioned by the United States. The Council, the European Union's governing body, is also targeting Mohammed Ansari, the leader of the Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force Unit 840, who it said ordered the assassination of journalists critical of the Iran. It said that the listings confirmed the EU's concerns about transnational repression by Iranian state bodies through the use of proxy agents, in particular involving criminals and organised crime networks targeting dissidents and human rights defenders across the world, including on EU territory.
