UAE's ruler meets Macron in Paris, no human rights issues raised!

France and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have signed an accord on Monday whereby the UAE will guarantee diesel supplies to France, a French presidency source said as Paris looks to diversify its hydrocarbons supplies amid the Ukraine war.

The deal coincides with the visit to Paris of UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (MBZ) between July 17-19, his first overseas state visit since taking over from his half-brother in May and the first by a UAE leader since 1991.

Amid calls for raising the human rights file during the meeting, French president Emmanuel Macron has ignored the UAE’s rights record during Mohamed bin Zayed’s visit.

Dozens of activists, lawyers, and academics are continued to be held in UAE jails amid serious human rights violations.

The UAE has also played a prominent role in conflicts abroad, where its own forces and those it backs have been responsible for significant abuses.

However, Emmanuel Macron did not mention these violations during the visit despite his commitment to the rights that France claims to defend.

Amid this international betrayal of the victims of human rights violations, we reiterate our calls on governments and international community to take serious positions towards the UAE regime and to put an end to their increasing violations.

We further call for an urgent international investigation into the torture allegations of dozens of political detainees, to examine their detention conditions, and to press for their immediate release.