Diplomatic Circles

Saudis crossed the line, and Canada shouldn’t back down

Canadians should get behind Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and refuse to be intimidated by the Saudi government's backlash.

Saudi ambassador Naif Bin Bandir Al-Sudairy, pictured in 2016 with former foreign affairs minister Stéphane Dion. Mr. Al-Sudairy has been recalled by the Saudi government as part of its backlash to a tweet from Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland that criticized the imprisonment by Saudi authorities of women's rights activist Samar Badawi. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Opinion

BY WARREN KINSELLA

August 13, 2018

TORONTO—Canada is in a social media war with Saudi Arabia. It’s not a real war—at least not yet. Real wars involve bullets and bombs and bodies. This one is presently confined to Twitter and press statements. Conscription hasn’t happened just yet. There has been one truly extraordinary sta...

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