BBC News

Saudi authorities have reportedly authorized the use of lethal force to clear land for Neom, a $500 billion futuristic desert city project.

BBC News has reported, citing a British-based former Saudi intelligence officer and satellite images, that authorities in Saudi Arabia have authorized the use of lethal force to clear land for a flagship eco-city that is part of its $500B Neom project.

BBC News has reported, citing a British-based former Saudi intelligence officer, that authorities in Saudi Arabia have authorized the use of lethal force to clear land for a flagship eco-city that is part of its $500B Neom project.

According to the BBC, citing a British-based former Saudi intelligence officer, authorities in Saudi Arabia have authorized the use of lethal force to clear land for a flagship eco-city that is part of its $500B Neom project.

NDTV.com

A former Saudi intelligence officer, Colonel Rabih Alenezi, claims he was instructed to evict villagers in order to clear the land for the project. The Saudi government has said that 6,000 people have been displaced for the Neom project, though human rights have estimated that the true figure may be much higher.

FOX News

A former Saudi intelligence officer, Colonel Rabih Alenezi, claims he was instructed to use lethal force to evict villagers to clear the land for the project. The region is largely inhabited by the Huwaitat tribe who have experienced large-scale arrests during the project's construction.

Col. Rabih Alenezi said that Riyadh has directed its officers to kill individuals refusing eviction from land sanctioned for The Line in a region whose main inhabitants, the Huwaitat tribe, have reportedly experienced mass arrests for resisting such orders.

Col. Rabih Alenezi said that officers have been directed to kill whoever resists eviction from land sanctioned for The Line in a region whose inhabitants have reportedly experienced mass arrests for not complying with such orders.

Col. Rabih Alenezi said that officers have been directed to kill anyone who resists eviction from land sanctioned for The Line in a region whose inhabitants have reportedly experienced mass arrests for not complying with such orders.

Middle East Monitor

The Saudi government has said that 6,000 people have been displaced for the Neom project, though human rights have estimated that the true figure may be much higher.

The New Arab

According to a human rights organization, at least 47 members of Huweitat tribe have been arrested — nearly a third of them sentenced to 10 to 50 years behind bars under counterterrorism law. Five were sentenced to death.

According to a human rights organization, at least 47 members of the Huweitat tribe have been arrested — with nearly a third of them sentenced to 10 to 50 years behind bars under a counterterrorism law. Five were sentenced to death.

According to a human rights organization, at least 47 members of the Huweitat tribe have been arrested — with nearly a third of them sentenced to 10 to 50 years behind bars under a counterterrorism law. Five were reportedly sentenced to death.

CNBC

Additionally, satellite images have confirmed that at least three villages — Al-Khuraybah, Gayal and Sharma — were wiped off the map for the Neom project to move forward.

A villager, Abdul Rahim al-Huwaiti, was shot and killed for protesting against eviction. Several other protestors have been arrested and prosecuted on terror-related charges. Satellite imagery analysis has confirmed the demolition of three villages in the area, Al-Khuraybah, Gayal, and Sharma.

Guardian

Neom is part of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the country's economy away from oil. The futuristic city's flagship project, The Line, is envisioned as a car free city, though only a small portion of the project is expected to be finished by 2030.

Neom and The Line are part of Saudi Arabia's plans to diversify its economy away from oil dependency, with the futuristic city being envisioned as a car free city. Only a mile and a half of the 105-mile project is expected to be finished by 2030.

This comes as Saudi Arabia dismissed reports over its alleged intentions to scale back in the medium-term some of its plans as Economy Minister Al Ibrahim spoke at a special meeting of the World Economic Forum last week.

Neom, promoted as a futuristic mega city that will be 33 times the size of New York, covering 26,500 square kilometers along the Aqaba Gulf and Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coastline.

Neom and The Line are part of Saudi Arabia's plans to diversify its economy away from oil dependency, with the futuristic city being envisioned as a car free city. By 2030, only a mile and a half of the 105-mile project is expected to have been finished.

BBC News #

FOX News #

CNBC #

Guardian #1703

Saudi Arabia has no regard for human rights. Using lethal force against peaceful protests is not only a grossly disproportionate response, it violates these villagers human rights to life and property. The Crown Prince obviously cares more about his kingdom's economic interests more than he cares about human-lives or the wellbeing of his country's residents.

Washington Post

Washington Post #6755

Saudi Arabia's MBS is displacing Huwaitat tribe for Neom city - The Washington Post

The area that NEOM is being built is largely uninhabited, making it the perfect blank canvas for a project of this scale. Though some villagers will need to be relocated, they are being compensated for the inconvenience. This innovative project will be a groundbreaking site to test solutions to some of the biggest issues humanity faces, providing not only a large amount of environmental sustainability but also a high quality of life for future residents.

Neom

THE LINE: a revolution in urban living

There's a 50% chance that the population of NEOM will be at least 101K by 2028, according to the Metaculus prediction community.

Metaculus

Metaculus #

Population of NEOM, Saudi Arabia by 2029?

*** GETTY *** Eric Lafforgue/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images

Report: Saudi Forces 'Told to Kill' to Clear Land for Eco-City

Saudi Arabia

Freedom & human rights

Civil liberties

Saudi Arabia has no regard for human rights. Using lethal force against peaceful protesters is not only a grossly disproportionate response, it violates the villagers' human rights to life and property. The Crown Prince obviously cares more about his kingdom's economic interests and his image than he does about human lives or the well-being of his country's residents.

The area that Neom is being built on is largely uninhabited, making it the perfect blank canvas for a project of this scale. Though some villagers will need to be relocated, they are being compensated for the inconvenience. This innovative project will be a groundbreaking site to test solutions to some of the biggest issues humanity faces, providing not only a large amount of environmental sustainability but also a high quality of life for future residents.

There's a 50% chance that the population of Neom will be at least 101K by 2028, according to the Metaculus prediction community.

Eric Lafforgue/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images

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Report: Saudi Forces 'Told to Kill' to Clear Land for Eco-City

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