Five Saudi Arabian agents could face death penalty for journalist's murder

The Saudi Arabian prosecutor's office on November 15 announced the prosecution of 11 people involved in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate in Istanbul, Türkiye last month, of which five suspects face the death penalty by beheading, according toNew York Times.

The prosecutor did not name the suspects, saying they would only be identified after the investigation was completed. In addition to the 11 people indicted, 10 other suspects are still being investigated to determine their roles in the case.

According to the report, former Saudi Arabian deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Assiri ordered a 15-man team to travel to Türkiye to force Khashoggi to return to Saudi Arabia. They were divided into three sub-groups: a negotiation team, an intelligence team and a logistics team. The only intelligence agent present in Istanbul, who was also the head of the negotiation team, ordered Khashoggi's murder without permission from his superiors in Riyadh.

The Saudi prosecutor also changed the government's previous statement, saying Khashoggi was tied up and given an overdose of sedatives, leading to his death. "The decision to dismember the body and remove it from the consulate was a spur-of-the-moment decision," the statement said.

The Saudi investigation did not reveal the name or contact information of a local resident who the prosecutor said received Khashoggi’s body and disposed of it. It is not clear where the body is. The prosecutor said it had interviewed agents under investigation to create a sketch of the local resident and would share the information with Türkiye.

Dissident journalist Khashoggi disappeared on October 2 after entering the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, Türkiye to complete paperwork for his third marriage. Riyadh admitted that the 60-year-old journalist died in the consulate and has fired six officials and arrested 18 people related to the incident for investigation.

The US Treasury Department announced on November 15 that it would sanction 17 Saudi officials accused of involvement in the Khashoggi murder, including the 15 assassins who traveled to Türkiye to carry out the plan, the Saudi consul general in Istanbul, and a senior adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. These are also people who have been held responsible or arrested by the Saudi government. Accordingly, the US will freeze all of these people's assets and prohibit US citizens from conducting business with them.