Ottawa calls for probe into apparent Saudi use of Canadian-made armored vehicles against citizens

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland’s department says she is “deeply concerned” that Saudi Arabia’s rulers appear to be deploying Canadian-made armored vehicles in an escalating conflict with Saudi citizens.

Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland’s department says she is “deeply concerned” that Saudi Arabia’s rulers appear to be deploying Canadian-made armored vehicles in an escalating conflict with Saudi citizens.

Ms. Freeland has asked officials to investigate the matter. Global Affairs Canada released a statement shortly after The Globe and Mail published a story Friday on the apparent use of Canadian-made combat vehicles in Saudi Arabia’s violence-plagued Eastern Province.

For the first time, video footage and photos have surfaced on social media allegedly showing the kingdom using Canadian weaponized equipment against Saudi civilians – a development that spurred calls Friday for the Liberal government to halt defense exports to the oil-rich nation.

Military equipment experts consulted by The Globe identified the machines appearing in these videos and photos as Gurkha RPVs, produced by Terradyne Armored Vehicles in Newmarket, Ont., just north of Toronto.

Global Affairs Institute said Friday that it is now probing the matter.