A Saudi court on Monday issued a final ruling in an apology to the family of slain Washington Post columnist and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi, which saved five convicts from execution.
On Saudi
state television, the Riyadh criminal court broadcast some details about the
final verdicts against eight Saudi nationals. Their names were not, released.
The court
sentenced the five to a maximum of 20 years in prison. Another was sentenced’
to 10 years in prison, and two others to seven years in prison.
The case has
been widely criticized by rights groups and independent U.S. investigators, who
say no high-ranking official or anyone else has been charged’ with ordering the
killings. The independence of the judiciary was also called’ into question.
Prior to his
assassination, Khashoggi had written critically about Saudi Crown Prince
Mohammed bin Salman in Washington Post columns. He had been living in exile in
the United States for almost a year when Prince Mohammed oversaw a crackdown in
Saudi Arabia on human rights activists, writers and critics of the state's
devastating war in Yemen.
Khashoggi
was killed’ inside the Saudi consulate in Turkey in late 2018.
Those killed
include a forensic doctor, intelligence and security officers and individuals
who worked for the Crown Prince's office. The Crown Prince has denied any
information about the operation.
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