Saudi naming to head UN rights panel 'grotesque': watchdog

DUBAI (AFP) - A free speech watchdog on Monday condemned as "grotesque" Saudi Arabia's appointment to head a panel advising the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Riyadh's ambassador to the Rights Council, Faisal bin Hassan Trad, "was quietly appointed" in June to head the five-member panel advising the council, meeting in Geneva, said Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

"The appointment only came to light today. It has enraged human rights defenders and international human rights organisations worldwide," the watchdog said in a statement .... http://www.france24.com