More conciliatory tone between government, opposition on Kohail brothers

It remains unclear whether Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper was able to set a few minutes aside with Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah when they were both in Washington D.C. this past weekend at a G20 global economic summit to discuss the fate of Mohamed and Sultan Kohail, Canadian citizens and former Dollard des Ormeaux residents who face the death penalty and the Saudi general court for a trial, respectively.

"What I can tell you is that the government of Canada has reviewed the case," the Prime Minister's spokesperson Dimitri Soudas told The Chronicle, adding the PM's office sent a diplomatic note to Saudi Arabia about the case sometime last week.

Soudas said the government will do all in its power to save the Kohails, and that Canadian diplomats have and will continue to meet with the family as well as their legal defence.

Concerns were raised last week when it appeared Mohamed Kohail's final legal course of appeal was rejected by the Saudi courts and nothing short of direct interference by the Canadian government for clemency could save his life.

Whereas the official Opposition and friends of the Kohails claimed that was the case, Canada's Foreign Affairs Ministry had said there was no verdict yet on the appeal.

Soudas did not have an update on that situation. "You'd have to ask Foreign Affairs directly," he told The Chronicle.

Meanwhile, Dan McTeague, Liberal MP for Pickering-Scarborough East in Ontario and critic for Consumer Affairs and Consular Services, announced he would be attempting to fly to Saudi Arabia to intervene directly on the Kohails' behalf.

"I'm firmly convinced that Mohamed is innocent, as is his brother Sultan," McTeague said.

McTeague is currently attempting to secure a visa for his trip.

He struck a more conciliatory tone than Liberals have in the past when speaking about this case. "I think Parliamentarians, regardless of what party we come from, are acting with one voice on this," he said.

"I'm willing to work with the government," he added, stating he has confidence in the Prime Minister and new Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon.

The Kohails had moved back to Saudi Arabia temporarily two years ago. When younger brother Sultan was accused of insulting the honour of a woman at the school he attended in Jidda, he went to older brother Mohamed, 23, for help. A schoolyard brawl broke out between Mohamed and a group of his friends, and Munzer Haraki, the cousin of the woman in question, and his own group. Haraki died after a fence collapsed on him. Mohamed and another youth, Muhanna Ezzat, were sentenced to death for having killed him. Sultan was originally tried in youth court and sentenced to 200 lashes and a year in prison before he turned 18 and it was decided to retry him in general court.

The Kohail family claims the two brothers were nowhere near Haraki when he died.

McTeague said he hopes to plead for forgiveness and clemency on the Kohail's behalf to the Haraki family.

Foreign Affairs did not return telephone calls for comment as of press time.