A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced five people to death for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year, the public prosecutor has said.
Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi government, was killed inside the kingdom’s consulate in the Turkish city of Istanbul by a team of Saudi agents.
The Saudi public prosecutor said it was the result of a “rogue operation” and put 11 unnamed individuals on trial; Saud al-Qahtani, a former high-profile Saudi royal adviser, was investigated but not charged and was released.
The murder of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, triggered Saudi Arabia’s biggest diplomatic crisis since the 9/11 attacks as world leaders and business executives sought to distance themselves from Riyadh.
The CIA concluded that the country’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, ordered Khashoggi’s assassination. The crown prince denies involvement, but told US TV last month that he took “full responsibility as a leader in Saudi Arabia”.
The prosecutor said three more people in the case had been sentenced to jail terms totalling 24 years.
