Leaders pen letter to the Saudis over death after child 'crime'

LINKS WITH CITY 'BRING DUTY TO SPEAK OUT' OVER ISSUES

- By DANIEL HOLLAND

NEWCASTLE politicians have written to Saudi authorities over the execution of a man for alleged crimes committed as a child.

City leaders have faced sustained pressure from campaigners over recent years to speak out over human rights abuses in the Gulf state, since the takeover of Newcastle United in 2021 by a consortium led by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Activists say growing links between Tyneside and Saudi Arabia, with council bosses keen to push for investment from the kingdom, have led to the city's reputation being "dragged through the mud".

It has now been confirmed that 12 councillors wrote to the Saudi embassy and directly to the Saudi king as part of a campaign calling for Abdullah al-Derazi's conviction to be quashed.