Saudi Arabia recalls its ambassador from Egypt for consultation and temporarily closed its embassy and consulate in Cairo, Al Arabiya television reported.
The move by Saudi Arabia followed protests in Egypt against the Kingdom’s detention of an Egyptian human rights lawyer, Ahmad Al Gazawi, arrested on April 17 for allegedly smuggling drugs into the kingdom.
Egyptian media reports, however, said Gazawi was arrested for his stances against Saudi Arabia’s ruling family.
A Saudi embassy statement has said Gazawi has not been convicted or sentenced in any case. Instead they said he was being questioned by authorities after airport officials in Jeddah found more than 20,000 anti-anxiety pills hidden inside his luggage. It also said he was not wearing pilgrims' clothes, which they said indicated he was not making a religious pilgrimage as his family maintains.
The Egyptian demonstrators called for the expulsion of the Saudi ambassador in Cairo.
Anti-Saudi sentiment has flared in recent years following reports of Egyptian nationals being mistreated in the kingdom or experiencing a miscarriage of justice in a Saudi court.
Gazawi flew to Jeddah on his way to perform a minor pilgrimage, called umrah, to Islam’s holy shrines in the Saudi cities of Makkah and Madinah, said Shereen Al Gazawi.
The fact that he was arrested on his way to perform a religious rite further enflamed Egyptian sentiment.
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