A ‘parody of justice’: sons of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi ‘forgive’ killers
- The move was condemned by the journalist’s former fiancée and a UN expert
- Khashoggi was killed and dismembered at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul in October 2018
The sons of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said Friday they “forgive” the killers of their father, a move condemned by his former fiancée and described as a “parody of justice” by a UN expert.
Khashoggi – a royal family insider turned critic – was killed and dismembered at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, in a case that tarnished the reputation of de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
His family’s pardon is expected to spare the lives of five unnamed people sentenced to death over the murder in a December court ruling, which was lambasted by human rights groups after two top aides to the crown prince were exonerated.
“On this holy night of this blessed month (of Ramadan) … we the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce we forgive and pardon those who killed our father,” the Washington Post columnist’s son Salah Khashoggi said on Twitter.
Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the legal ramifications of the announcement from Salah, who lives in the kingdom and has denied reports of a financial settlement with the government.
“What this essentially means is that the killers will avoid capital punishment” as the family reserved the right to forgive them under Islamic sharia law, Ali Shihabi, a Saudi author and analyst close to the government said on Twitter.