(Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
Report: African Migrants Are Dying In Saudi Coronavirus Centers
The Telegraph newspaper reveals that Saudi Arabia's government is holding hundreds of African migrants hostage in squalid conditions in a supposed bid to stop the coronavirus.
"My only crime is leaving my country in search of a better life. But they beat us with whips and electric cords as if we were murderers," says one of the African migrants currently being forced to live under torturous conditions, along with hundreds of others, in a coronavirus center in Saudi Arabia. An investigative report released by The Telegraph reveals that Saudi Arabia is keeping hundreds of African migrants—many young and of Ethiopian descent—in a center set up to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
<p>Harrowing pictures, showing dozens of men, cramped together in various states of emaciation, taken with mobile phones were sent to <em>The Telegraph </em>by migrants held in these detention centers. Some other pictures showed some men revealing the welts on their backs from being beaten by the guards at the center, and a picture of a teenager who had hung himself, although unreleased, was among the fold.</p><p><div class="preroll-video"></div><ora-player></ora-player></p><p> In March, the government of Saudi Arabia deported nearly 3,000 Ethiopian migrant workers as it struggled to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. And while 200,000 migrants were also slated for deportation, they have since been rounded from different parts of Saudi Arabia and left to suffer under squalid conditions.</p><div id="12a2d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="4aca275271392782d9aab41a25192469"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1300424167645425666" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Saudi Arabia has kept hundreds of African migrants in deplorable conditions in detention camps to reportedly preven… https://t.co/gwVFHFXRen</div> — Africa Facts Zone (@Africa Facts Zone)<a href="https://twitter.com/AfricaFactsZone/statuses/1300424167645425666">1598880256.0</a></blockquote></div><p>The British newspaper was able to locate two of the centers, one in Al Shumaisi, and the other in Jazan, where this act, that has been described as modern slavery, has been taking place. With some migrants said to have been in these centers for up to four months, many international human rights bodies have condemned this act from one of the world's richest nations, who can afford to house migrants in better conditions.<br></p><p><div class="dfp_atf-slot" data-not-loaded="true"></div><script type="text/javascript">
checkdfpScripts();
</script></p><p><em>The Telegraph </em>reports now that the Saudi government has responded promising to look into the issue to ensure that "If facilities are found to be lacking, their needs will be addressed appropriately." There is no excuse for human beings to be treated this way and many have taken to social media to make that point.</p><div id="679c3" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f292e51b75078ec948551001c2a47fb7"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1299980408780722176" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">This is horrendous:
Saudi Arabia is keeping hundreds if not thousands of African migrants locked up in heinous ‘Co… https://t.co/Q09runAkTU</div> — Samira Sawlani (@Samira Sawlani)<a href="https://twitter.com/samirasawlani/statuses/1299980408780722176">1598774456.0</a></blockquote></div><p><br></p><div id="93cdb" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e94df7c17f472c0e480b34e3e81daf48"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1300425267232550915" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">@AfricaFactsZone Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries shocking treatment of African Migrants need to spoken of mor… https://t.co/gr0Lk6OYwn</div> — محمد🇸🇴 (@محمد🇸🇴)<a href="https://twitter.com/LibaaxOfSomalia/statuses/1300425267232550915">1598880519.0</a></blockquote></div>
Keep reading...
Show less
