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Stephen Harper is defending a major military deal with Saudi Arabia in the face of questions about pervasive human rights abuses in that country, writes Jennifer Ditchburn of the Canadian Press.

Here is the rest of Jennifer Ditchburn’s article:

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He says cancelling the contract could punish Ontario plant workers.

The issue arises as a young man, arrested at age 17 for protesting the Saudi regime, faces imminent beheading and crucifixion in a country known for crackdowns on opponents and the repressive treatment of women.

“Notwithstanding its human rights violations, which are significant, this is a contract with a country that is an ally against the Islamic state, a contract that any one of our allies would have signed,” the Conservative leader said at an event in Riviere-du-Loup, Que.

“We expressed our outrage, our disagreement from time to time with the government of Saudi Arabia for their treatment of human rights, but I don’t think it makes any sense to pull a contract in a way that would only punish Canadian workers.”