UN expert eyes probe of Saudi prince role in Khashoggi death

Author: Associated Press
Published:
FILE – In this Nov. 11, 2015 file photo, Saudi Arabian Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends a summit of Arab and Latin American leaders in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has appointed his 31-year-old son Mohammed bin Salman as crown prince, removing the country’s counterterrorism czar and a figure well-known to Washington from the royal line of succession. In a series of royal decrees issued Wednesday, June 21, 2017 and carried on the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the monarch stripped Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who was first in line to the throne, from his title as crown prince and from his post as the country’s powerful interior minister overseeing security. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File)

An independent U.N. human rights expert investigating the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi is recommending an investigation into the possible role of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, citing “credible evidence.”

Agnes Callamard released a 101-page report into the October killing of Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul that lays out dozens of recommendations. It calls on U.N. bodies or Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to “demand” a follow-up criminal investigation.

Callamard noted the “extreme sensitivity” of considering the criminal responsibility of the crown prince, as well as Saud Alqahtani, a senior adviser to the Saudi royal court who has not been charged.

“No conclusion is made as to guilt,” she wrote of the two men. “The only conclusion made is that there is credible evidence meriting further investigation.”

(Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.