Jamal Khashoggi murder: Press watchdog RSF files lawsuit against Saudi crown prince

An international media rights group has filed a complaint against Saudi Arabia’s crown prince and four other top officials accusing them of crimes against humanity over allegations they were involved in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, authorities said on March 2. Reporters without Borders, in its complaint, also named 34 other journalists who had been “victims of systematic attacks for political reasons.” The over 500 pages long complaint was filed with German persecutors in Karlsruhe on March 1, Associated Press reported citing the prosecutor’s office.

"On 1 March 2021, RSF (Reporters Without Borders) filed a criminal complaint with the German Public Prosecutor General of the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, detailing a litany of crimes against humanity committed against journalists in Saudi Arabia. The complaint, a document of over 500 pages in German, addresses 35 cases of journalists: slain Saudi columnist Jamal Khashoggi, and 34 journalists who have been jailed in Saudi Arabia, including 33 currently in detention -- among them, blogger Raif Badawi," the offcial statement read. 

Khashoggi, a columnist for Washington Post disappeared while visiting Saudi Consulate on his trip to Istanbul in 2018. Later, Suadi officials admitted that Khashoggi was mistakenly killed during an extradition operation. However, the crown Prince continues to deny any knowledge of the same.

'policies to silence journalists 

The complaint accuses Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, his close adviser Saud Al-Qahtani and three other high-ranking Saudi officials of being responsible for Khashoggi's killing. Additionally, it also accuses them of devising policies to silence journalists. “The named suspects were identified for their organizational or executive responsibility in Khashoggi’s killing, as well as their involvement in developing a state policy to attack and silence journalists,” the group said in a statement.

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This comes as the US government released a report last week, which blamed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. The report concluded that it is ''highly unlikely'' that Saudi officials would have carried out an operation without the Crown Prince's authorisation. The report claimed that since the Crown Prince is the one calling shots in the Kingdom and the team of hitmen who killed Khashoggi involved members of his protective detail, it is likely that the operation was approved by Mohammed bin Salman. 

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