UK Makes Deal with Saudi Arabia Over Election to UN Human Rights Council

Documents obtained by WikiLeaks reveal that Great Britain and Saudi Arabia made a secret deal in 2013 to vote in support of each other in both countries’ bids to join the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), according to leaked diplomatic cables. There might have been a bribe, small by Saudi standards, of £100,000 to Her Majesty’s Foreign Office.

This is revealed as Saudi Arabia becomes chairman of that council in the midst of an international outcry over the Saudis’ death sentence for Shi’a activist Ali Mohammed al-Nimr, who at the age of 17 was convicted of joining an anti-government demonstration; he is sentenced to die by crucifixion. (Jeremy Corbyn made an issue of the al-Nimr case in his speech at the Labour Party conference Tuesday.) The leaked document reads:

“The [saudi] ministry might find it an opportunity to exchange support with the United Kingdom, where the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia would support the candidacy of the United Kingdom to the membership of the council for the period 2014-2015 in exchange for the support of the United Kingdom to the candidacy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

And another document states that Saudi Arabia transferred £100,000 for “expenditures resulting from the campaign to nominate the Kingdom for membership of the human rights council for the period 2014-2016.” The Guardian comments that is was unclear where or how this money was spent.

The story was revealed in Murdoch’s The Australian daily.