Published 07:16 IST, September 8th 2020
Saudi Arabia overturns death sentence for 5 people convicted in murder of Jamal Kashoggi
Authorities in Saudi Arabia have convicted eight men in the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The assassination occurred in 2018
Authorities in Saudi Arabia have convicted eight men in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The sentences to the guilty part were handed out on August 7. The identities of those convicted for the killing of the dissident journalist has not been revealed. Jamal Khashoggi was a vocal critic of the Saudi Regime and was assassinated back in 2018.
5 death sentences overturned
As per reports, 5 men were sentenced to 20 years in prison while 3 were sentenced to 10 years. Five of those convicted had originally been given death sentences but back in May, Khashoggi's sons ‘pardoned’ their dad’s killers and therefore their death sentence was rendered void.
Jamal Khashoggi during the time of his death was a journalist for The Washington Post and had formerly been the general manager and editor-in-chief of the Al-Arab News Channel. Khashoggi was a vocal critic of the Saudi regime and was assassinated on October 2 back in 2018. Khashoggi’s assassination took place at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Turkey where he was lured under the pretext of acquiring paperwork certifying his divorce from his former wife Alaa Nassif in order to be able to marry his Turkish fiancée Hatice Cengiz.
As per reports, Turkish authorities believe that Khashoggi had been killed by a 15 member Saudi hit team that killed him the moment he entered the consulate. Immediately after his death, authorities in Saudi Arabia denied any involvement and only under pressure from the international community and changing their narrative several times admitted that the dissident journalist had actually been assassinated, but continued to deny that he was killed under bin Salman’s orders.
(Image/Input Credit ANI)
Updated 07:55 IST, September 8th 2020