(The Washington Post) – Saudi Arabia ordered the expulsion on Monday of the Canadian ambassador and the halting of all new trade and investment deals between the two countries after Canada said it was “gravely concerned” about the recent arrests of Saudi civil society and women’s rights activists.
In a statement issued early Monday, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said the ambassador, Dennis Horak, was persona non grata and gave him 24 hours to leave the country, adding that it would be recalling its own envoy to Ottawa for further consultations and retained “its right to take further action.”
The unusually heated dispute between the two governments was the latest international fallout from Saudi Arabia’s domestic crackdown on perceived dissenters, including the arrests of its most prominent women’s rights activists.
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