Saudi pressuring Canada to extradite ex-intelligence officer
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman has been pressing Canada to extradite former top Saudi intelligence officer Saad Al-Jabri, Canadian newspaper the Globe and Mail reports.
According to the publication, Saad Al-Jabri held a cabinet-rank intelligence post under deposed Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Nayef and has been living in Toronto since a 2017 palace coup in Riyadh.
The Saudis attempted to have Al-Jabri arrested by issuing a “red notice” order through Interpol, the international co-operation organisation for police, in late 2017. In 2018, a visiting Saudi delegation also pressed Canada to extradite him.
The Canadian government has not commented on the matter, with a Justice Department spokesperson saying in statement that extradition requests are confidential.
“We cannot comment on the existence of extradition requests for specific individuals until the request is made public by the courts,” he said.
In recent months, Bin Salman has also increased pressure on Al-Jabri’s relatives, detaining his adult children, to force him to return to the kingdom, his family said.
