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Saudi Arabia’s national carrier Saudia is suspending its lone service to Canada amid an escalating diplomatic dispute between the two countries.
The carrier made the announcement that it will halt its four-times-weekly Jeddah-Toronto service in a tweet Tuesday. No Canadian airline flies to Saudi Arabia.
Tensions between the two countries began over the weekend after Canada’s foreign ministry tweeted that Saudi Arabia should immediately release jailed civil rights activists, including women’s rights activist Samar Badawi.
The statement led Saudi Arabia to expel Canadian ambassador Dennis Horak and to recall its own ambassador to Ottawa.
In a statement Sunday, Saudia Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called Canada’s public rebuke of Saudi Arabia, “a blatant interference in the Kingdom’s domestic affairs, against basic international norms and all international protocols.”
The Kingdom also said it would suspend all new trade with Canada.
Canada isn’t backing down, however. On Monday, minister of foreign affairs Chrystia Freeland responded to the expulsion of Horak by reaffirming the county’s support of human rights, including women’s rights, around the globe.
“We will never hesitate to promote these values and we believe that this dialogue is critical to international diplomacy,” she said.
Source: travelweekly.com
