Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2020 to Question 91984 on Saudi Arabia: Detainees, what recent steps he has taken to secure the release of human right defenders in Saudi Arabia.

FCDO Ministers, our Ambassador and Embassy officials in Riyadh frequently raise concerns over the continued detention of human rights defenders, at senior levels with the Saudi authorities. We press for due process, and raise concerns about the use of solitary confinement, lack of family contact and allegations of torture.

The UK, along with other Embassies in Saudi Arabia, consistently attempts to attend the trials of political detainees. On 29 November, the UK Ambassador for Human Rights and six European counterparts released a joint statement reiterating our call for the release of all political detainees. The UK has consistently called for the release of women's rights defenders in Saudi Arabia, and we will continue to do so. We hope to see Loujain Al Hathloul reunited with her family as soon as possible.