‘The last thing the Premier League wants is the involvement of Saudi dictatorship’: Human rights campaigners urge Newcastle United to REJECT ‘immoral’ £300m takeover due to chairmans links with Yemen attacks
- Human rights campaigners have urged Newcastle to reject their takeover deal
- The deal is chaired by Mohammed bin Salman, who oversaw the Yemen attacks
- A spokesperson said the ‘immoral’ deal is ‘the last thing Premier League wants’
Human rights campaigners have urged Newcastle United to reject their £300million takeover, that they labelled as ‘immoral’.
The bid to take over the club from owner Mike Ashley is backed by Saudi Arabia‘s Public Investment Fund, which is reportedly providing 80% of the funding and is chaired by Mohammed bin Salman, who also the defence minister.
He has overseen the Saudi-led attack of Yemen, which has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, and has also been linked to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Human rights campaigners have urged Newcastle United to reject their £300m takeover
Mohamed bin Salman oversaw the Yemen attacks which created a humanitarian crisis
‘If this immoral bid succeeds it will provide yet another propaganda vehicle for one of the most brutal and authoritarian regimes in the world,’ said Andrew Smith, a spokesperson for Campaign Against Arms Trade
‘The last thing that Premier League football needs is the involvement of the Saudi dictatorship.’
He added: ‘This is sports-washing plain and simple. Football clubs are still community institutions, and should leave a positive footprint.’
The Premier League will not stand in way of takeover that will end Mike Ashley’s 13-year reign
‘Money should not trump values. The message that this deal would send is one of contempt for the many thousands of victims of Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia and Yemen.’
It was reported that the Premier League was unlikely to stand in the way of Newcastle’s takeover that Sportsmail revealed is ‘getting closer’ to ending Mike Ashley’s 13-year reign as owner.
According to Sky Sports, it would require intervention from the UK government to stop the sale going ahead due to the human rights issues.