Saudi ex-intel officer suing crown prince placed under high security amid threats: Reports

The former Saudi intelligence officer Saad Aljabri, who has accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of trying to have him assassinated in 2018, is reported to have been placed under heightened security following a new threat to his life.

According to an international media report, Aljabri is under protection by ‘heavily armed’ officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as well as private guards. Saad Aljabri served as a counterespionage chief under a rival Saudi prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, who was ousted in a bloodless palace coup by Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2017. 

The former intelligence officer is currently living in exile in Canada and has accused the Saudi crown prince of sending a hit-squad to have him killed. As per reports, Aljabri has filed a federal lawsuit in the United States against Prince Mohammed bin Salman, alleging the royal tried to trap and kill him in the United States and Canada.

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Federal suit filed against Saudi Crown Prince  

As re reports, Aljabri in his complaint (which was filed in Washington DC) has alleged that the failed plan to kill him took place right after Jamal Khashoggi's murder in 2018. The complaint states that the former spy possesses too much information about the Saudi crown prince, which could hamper the Arab nation's ties with United States. 

In the lawsuit filed on August 6, Aljabri stated the alleged plot to kill him failed after the hit-squad was obstructed by Canadian border agents at Toronto's Pearson International Airport. As per reports, the court documents also mention that Jamal Khashoggi was killed by a group of mercenaries called the 'Tiger Squad' and the 61-year-old in his complaint alleged that it was the same squad that tried to kill him too. 

Furthermore, Aljabri has claimed that Prince Mohammed bin Salman sent personal messages to him asking him to return to Saudi Arabia, some of which were 'threatening' in nature.

As per reports, when Aljabri served in the Saudi Arabia intelligence department, he was a key bridge between the country's spy agency and agencies such as CIA of the United States, MI6 of the United Kingdom, ASIS of Australia, CSIS of Canada, and NZSIS of New Zealand.

(Image/Inputs: AP) 

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