Claims of forced clearance for eco-city

Neom: Saudi forces 'told to kill’ to clear land for eco-city

The Line - a planned car-free city, 170km (106 miles) long but just 200m (656ft) wide - is the flagship development in Saudi Arabia's Neom eco-project. Part of the Saudi Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the kingdom's economy away from oil, it is being built by dozens of Western companies. Satellite images show villages wiped off the map. And a former Saudi intelligence officer has told a BBC Verify and BBC Eye investigation the country's authorities permitted the use of lethal force to clear the land. Col Rabih Alenezi says he was ordered to evict villagers from the local Huwaitat tribe. One was subsequently shot dead for protesting. Authorities later said he had opened fire. Neom “is the centrepiece of [Saudi Crown Prince] Mohamed Bin Salman's ideas. That's why he was so...read more...

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