Khashoggi fiancee sues Saudi prince in US over murder

Yahoo – AFP, October 20, 2020 

Hatice Cengiz, the fiancee of the late journalist Jamal Khashoggi, sued Saudi
Arabia's crown prince and other Saudis in US court over the Khashoggi's
murder in October 2018

The fiancee of journalist Jamal Khashoggi sued Saudi Arabia's crown prince and other officials Tuesday in a US court, seeking damages for his brutal murder in Istanbul two years ago. 

Turkish citizen Hatice Cengiz and the human rights group Khashoggi formed before his death, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), is pursuing Mohammed bin Salman and 28 others for damages over the October 2, 2018 killing of the US-based writer. 

Cengiz claims personal injury and financial losses over Khashoggi's death, while DAWN said its operations and objectives were hampered by the loss of its founder and central figure. 

"The ruthless torture and murder of Mr. Khashoggi shocked the conscience of people throughout the world," the suit said. 

"The objective of the murder was clear –- to halt Mr. Khashoggi's advocacy in the United States, principally as the executive director of plaintiff DAWN, for democratic reform in the Arab world." 

Khashoggi was killed inside Saudi Arabia's Istanbul consulate and his body dismembered and disposed of by a team of Saudis allegedly directed by right-hand men of the crown prince. 

After global expressions of outrage over the case and pressure from the United States and Turkey, 13 Saudis were tried in Riyadh and sentenced to stiff prison terms. 

But two top royal aides, deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Assiri and the royal court's media chief Saud al-Qahtani, were exonerated, despite links to the murder. 

Both of the aides, those convicted in Saudi Arabia for the murder, and others tied to the plot were named in the lawsuit. 

Cengiz and DAWN said they filed the suit in Washington federal court because they saw no chance for justice in Saudi Arabia, known for its opaque courts, and Turkish legal experts said the civil case would not go forward while Ankara pursues a criminal case over the murder. 

A prominent critic of the Riyadh regime, Khashoggi has been living near Washington and working in part for the Washington Post when he was killed. 

Cengiz said the two had wed under Islamic traditions and were preparing a civil marriage. 

The suit alleges that the plot against him involved the Saudi embassy in Washington, which directed him to travel to Istanbul to obtain the documents needed for their marriage. 

It also says his murder damaged the operations of DAWN, which is based in Washington. 

The defendants were "aware of Mr. Khashoggi's US ties and brutally killed Mr Khashoggi to silence him and prevent him from continuing in the United States his advocacy for democracy in the Arab world," the suit said.

New 'threat' against former Saudi spy in Canada: media

Yahoo – AFP, Brendan Smialowski, August 8, 2020

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is seen in Osaka,
Japan in June 2019

A former senior Saudi intelligence official who has accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of trying to have him assassinated in 2018 has been placed under heightened security after a new threat on his life, a Canadian newspaper reported.

The Globe and Mail said Canadian security services had been informed of a new attempted attack on Saad Aljabri, who lives at an undisclosed location in the Toronto region.

Aljabri served as a counterespionage chief under a rival prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, who was ousted in 2017 by Prince Mohammed.

The newspaper said its source -- someone "with knowledge of the situation" -- would provide no further details on the more recent threat by Saudi agents.

Aljabri is now under protection by "heavily armed" officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as well as private guards, the news report said.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday with a court in Washington, Aljabri accused Prince Mohammed of having sent a hit squad to Canada to kill and dismember him in 2018, the same fate that two weeks earlier befell dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.

Aljabri's suit said he was wanted dead because he had intimate knowledge of Prince Mohammed's activities that could sour the close relationship being fostered with the Trump administration in Washington.

Asked to comment on the Globe report, Mary-Liz Power, spokeswoman for Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair, directed a reporter to an earlier comment by Blair about the 2018 attempt.

"While we cannot comment on specific allegations currently before the courts," he said then, "we are aware of incidents in which foreign actors have attempted to monitor, intimidate or threaten Canadians and those living in Canada.

"It is completely unacceptable and we will never tolerate foreign actors threatening Canada's national security or the safety of our citizens and residents."

Aljabri was already abroad in June 2017 when Prince Mohammed seized power, removing Prince Nayef as crown prince and placing him under house arrest.

After his children in Riyadh were hit with travel restrictions, Aljabri refused entreaties to return, fearing for his life, and moved to Canada, where a son lives.

In March his children in Saudi Arabia were taken away and haven't been heard from.

The suit against Prince Mohammed and several others was filed as a claim of attempted extrajudicial killing under the Torture Victim Protection Act. Aljabri asked the court for unspecified damages.

Spain's ex-king Juan Carlos heads for exile under corruption cloud

Yahoo – AFP, August 3, 2020

Spain's former king Juan Carlos abdicated in 2014 (AFP Photo/JAIME REINA)

Madrid (AFP) - Spain's former king Juan Carlos, who is facing investigation at home and abroad for corruption, announced Monday that he plans to go into exile.

The 82-year-old revealed he would leave the country in a letter to his son, the current King Felipe VI who accepted his decision, the royal palace said in a statement.

"Guided by the conviction to best serve the people of Spain, its institutions, and you as king, I inform you of my decision at this time to go into exile outside Spain," Juan Carlos wrote.

"It's a decision I take with deep anguish, but great peace of mind," he said.

Probes are under way in Switzerland and Spain where media regularly publish details of the murky management of funds allegedly paid to the former head of state by Saudi Arabia.

Spain's Supreme Court announced in June an investigation to determine the legal responsibility of the ex-monarch -- but because of the immunity he holds only for acts committed after his abdication.

The suspicions focus on $100 million (85 million euros) alleged to have been paid secretly into a Swiss bank account in 2008.

Juan Carlos ascended the throne in 1975 on the death of the fascist dictator Francisco Franco and ruled for 38 years before abdicating in favour of his son Felipe VI in June 2014.

He was a popular figure for decades, playing a key role in the democratic transition from the Franco dictatorship which ruled Spain from 1939-1975.

But an inquiry opened in Spain in September 2018 following the publication of records attributed to German businesswoman Corinna Larsen, allegedly a one-time mistress of Juan Carlos.

She claimed he had received a commission when a consortium of Spanish companies were awarded a high-speed railway contract to link the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

Larsen told Swiss investigators he had transferred her nearly 65 million euros in the Bahamas, "not to get rid of the money" but "out of gratitude and out of love", according to El Pais daily.

Swiss media reported last March that Juan Carlos was paid 100 million dollars into a Panamanian foundation's Swiss bank account by then Saudi king Abdullah in 2008.

The same month The Daily Telegraph in Britain reported that Felipe VI was also a beneficiary of the foundation.

The king withdrew from his father an annual royal allowance of nearly 200,000 euros and renounced his inheritance "to preserve the exemplariness of the crown".

Online outlet El Espanol reported that Swiss lawyer Dante Canonica told the Geneva public prosecutor's office he had been instructed to "create a structure" to hide the funds paid to Juan Carlos.

Spanish king distances himself from scandal-hit father

Yahoo – AFP, March 15, 2020

Juan Carlos handed over power to his son, Felipe in 2014 (AFP Photo/Juanjo Martín)

Madrid (AFP) - King Felipe VI of Spain moved Sunday to distance himself from his scandal-hit father, stripping him of his palace allowance and renouncing what he was due to inherit from him.

A statement from the palace announced that he had stripped the former king Juan Carlos, of his allowance and was himself renouncing what he was due to inherit from him.

The announcement came after media reports that Juan Carlos had received 100 million dollars (90 million euros) from Saudi Arabia via an offshore account -- and that King Felipe himself was also a beneficiary.

The money was lodged in a Swiss bank account in the name of a Panamanian foundation.

In the palace statement, the reigning king said that in April he had made it clear to a notary that he would accept no money from the foundation in question.

He also that he had absolutely no knowledge of having been named as a beneficiary to another foundation, which according to press reports paid millions of euros towards his father's flights in private jets.

On Tuesday, the Spanish parliament decided against launching an investigation into suspected money laundering by the former king Juan Carlos.

Reported Saudi payments to ex-king

Spain's hard-left Podemos party had called for it after reports earlier this month that in 2008 Juan Carlos received $100 million from Saudi king Abdallah via the Swiss account of an entity listed in Panama.

The Swiss daily Tribune de Geneve added that in 2012, $65 million of that sum was given by the king to his former mistress, Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein.

Then a report in Britain's Daily Telegraph said that 52-year-old King Felipe was also a beneficiary of the fund, which it said had been set up when Juan Carlos was still on the throne.

Juan Carlos, now 82, came to the throne after the death of the military dictator Francisco Franco in 1975 and is widely respected for having favoured a transition to democracy.

But he lost his immunity from prosecution after handing power to his son, Felipe, in June 2014 following a 39-year reign.

He resigned from public life last year after a series of scandals about his private life.

In 2012, he outraged Spaniards by going elephant hunting in Botswana at the height of the country's recession.

Spanish reports say Juan Carlos has until now received an annual allowance from the state of more than 194,000 euros.

Saudi Arabia in royal purge over 'coup plot'

Yahoo – AFP, Anuj Chopra, March 7, 2020

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz (R), Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef (C)
and deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, pictured in late 2016 (AFP
Photo/BANDAR AL-JALOUD)

Riyadh (AFP) - Saudi authorities have detained three princes including King Salman's brother and nephew for allegedly plotting a coup, three sources told AFP Saturday, signalling the de facto ruler's tightening grip on power.

The detentions, which cast aside the last vestiges of potential opposition to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, come at a sensitive time as the petro-state grapples with plunging oil prices and limits access to Islam's holiest sites over fears of the new coronavirus.

Royal guards detained Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, a brother of King Salman, and the monarch's nephew Prince Mohammed bin Nayef on Friday after they were accused of plotting a palace coup aimed at unseating the crown prince -- heir to the Saudi throne -- an Arab official and a Western official told AFP.

Prince Nayef's younger brother, Prince Nawaf bin Nayef, was also detained, they added.

A number of military and interior ministry officials accused of supporting the coup plot had also been rounded up, the Western official said, citing Saudi government sources.

"With this purge, no rivals remain to stop the crown prince's succession to the throne," he said.

The detentions raised speculation about the health of the 84-year-old king and whether the crown prince's succession to the Arab world's most powerful throne was imminent.

But another source close to the Saudi leadership told AFP the "king is healthy and fine" and the detentions were meant to enforce "discipline" within the royal family.

The crown prince is "in control" and the purge was carried out "after an accumulation of negative behaviour by the two princes", this source added without elaborating.

The Wall Street Journal, which was first to report the detentions, said Prince Ahmed and Prince Nayef -- once potential contenders for the throne -- could face lifetime imprisonment or execution.

It was unclear where they were being held.

The detentions mark the latest crackdown by Prince Mohammed, the king's son who has consolidated his grip on power with the imprisonment of prominent clerics and activists as well as princes and businessmen.

Already viewed as the defacto ruler controlling all the major levers of government, from defence to the economy, the prince is widely seen to be stamping out traces of internal dissent before a formal transfer of power from his father King Salman.

Prince Mohammed has faced a torrent of international condemnation over the murder of critic Jamal Khashoggi inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate in October 2018.

"Prince Mohammed is emboldened -- he has already ousted any threats to his rise and jailed or murdered critics of his regime without any repercussion," said Becca Wasser, a policy analyst at the US-based RAND Corporation.

"This is a further step to shore up his power and a message to anyone -- including royals -- not to cross him."

'Disgruntled princes'

The detentions come as Saudi Arabia grapples with a coronavirus-led slump in oil prices just as the kingdom was seeking to raise funds to finance Prince Mohammed's ambitious Vision 2030 reform programme.

The kingdom has suspended the "umrah" year-round pilgrimage over fears of the disease spreading to Mecca and Medina, raising uncertainty over the upcoming hajj. The pilgrimages are a key source of revenue.

"The arrest of several senior disgruntled princes... reflects a growing discontent with the 'Son King' over his despicable hegemony and erratic social, economic, foreign and religious policies," said Madawi al-Rasheed, a London-based Saudi academic.

Prince Mohammed had edged out Prince Nayef, the former crown prince and interior minister, in 2017 to become heir to the throne.

At the time, Saudi television channels showed Prince Mohammed kissing the hand of the older prince and kneeling before him in a show of reverence.

Western media reports later said that Prince Nayef had been placed under house arrest, a claim denied by Saudi authorities.

Prince Ahmed, said to be in his 70s, was reportedly keeping a low profile after he returned to the kingdom from his base in London.

Just before his return in October 2018, the prince had courted controversy over remarks he made to protesters in London chanting against Saudi royals over the kingdom's military involvement in the ongoing conflict in Yemen.

"What does the family have to do with it? Certain individuals are responsible... the king and the crown prince," he said, according to an online video of the incident.

The comment was seen by many as rare criticism of the kingdom's leaders, but Prince Ahmed had dismissed that interpretation as "inaccurate".

Saudi Arabia released images of King Salman carrying out his royal duties on Sunday, after a stunning purge of at least three princes including his brother and nephew for allegedly plotting a coup. https://t.co/kqi3opHHAD

— AFP news agency (@AFP) March 8, 2020

Saudi Arabia to enforce 'decency' amid tourism push

Yahoo – AFP, September 28, 2019

Saudi Arabia on Friday said citizens from 49 countries are eligible for online
e-visas or visas on arrival (AFP Photo/Fayez Nureldine)

Riyadh (AFP) - Saudi Arabia on Saturday said it would impose fines for violations of "public decency", including immodest clothing and public displays of affection, a day after the austere kingdom opened up to foreign tourists.

The interior ministry said it had identified 19 such "offences" but did not specify the penalties, as the ultra-conservative Islamic country begins issuing tourist visas for the first time as part of a push to diversify its oil-reliant economy.

"The new regulations require men and women to dress modestly and to refrain from public displays of affection. Women are free to choose modest clothing," a statement said.

"The regulations are meant to ensure that visitors and tourists in the kingdom are aware of the law relating to public behaviour so that they comply with it."

Saudi Arabia on Friday said citizens from 49 countries are now eligible for online e-visas or visas on arrival, including the United States, Australia and several European nations.

Kickstarting tourism is one of the centrepieces of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Vision 2030 reform programme to prepare the biggest Arab economy for a post-oil era.

But the conservative country, which forbids alcohol and is notorious for sex segregation, is seen as an unlikely destination for global tourists aside from Muslim pilgrims visiting holy sites in Mecca and Medina.

Men and women must avoid "tight fitting clothing" or clothes with "profane language or images", read an instruction on an English language website launched by the tourism authority.

"Women should cover shoulders and knees in public," it added.

But tourism chief Ahmed al-Khateeb said foreign women were not obligated to wear the body-shrouding abaya robe that is still mandatory public wear for Saudi women.

Prince Mohammed has sought to shake off his country's ultra-conservative image -- lifting a ban on cinemas and women drivers while allowing gender-mixed concerts and sporting extravaganzas.

The relaxed social norms in a kingdom have been welcomed by many Saudis, two-thirds of whom are under 30.

But new public decency guidelines, first approved by cabinet in April, are widely perceived to be vague and have sparked public concern that they would be open to interpretation.

They have also stoked fears of a revival of morality policing.

Saudi Arabia's religious police once elicited widespread fear, chasing men and women out of malls to pray and berating anyone seen mingling with the opposite sex.

But the bearded enforcers of public morality, whose powers have been clipped in recent years, are now largely out of sight.

Saudi Arabia is attempting a comeback on the global stage one year after journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder, but the crisis has weakened it and undermined its de facto leader's ambitious reforms, analysts say https://t.co/em7O5M25Ec pic.twitter.com/ZKdK9Nqwa6

— AFP news agency (@AFP) 29 september 2019

A personal bodyguard of Saudi Arabia's King Salman has been shot dead and seven others wounded, including security forces, during an altercation at a friend's home, authorities said https://t.co/25K67KmJ0d pic.twitter.com/SKz9nsf8dB

— AFP news agency (@AFP) 29 september 2019

Iran says 'blue girl' football fan admitted 'mistake'

Yahoo – AFP, 14 September 2019

Iran has come under increasing pressure to lift a ban on women entering
stadidums (AFP Photo/JONATHAN NACKSTRAND)

Tehran (AFP) - An Iranian football fan who set herself ablaze and died after being arrested for trying to enter a stadium had "confessed her mistake" when she was questioned, the judiciary said Saturday.

Sahar Khodayari, dubbed "blue girl" because of the colours of the team she supported, Esteghlal FC, was reportedly detained when she tried to enter a stadium dressed as a man to watch them last year.

She died of her injuries in a Tehran hospital after setting herself on fire outside a court last week.

Her death sparked outrage online, with celebrities and activists using the hashtag #blue_girl to urge the sport's world governing body FIFA to ban Iran from competitions and fans to boycott matches.

Iranian women spectators have been barred from football and other stadiums in the Islamic republic since 1981, despite international pressure to let them attend.

Iran's Vice President for Women and Family Affairs Masoumeh Ebtekar on Tuesday asked the judiciary to investigate her death.

The judiciary said, without naming anyone, that a young woman had been arrested when trying to enter a stadium and faced charges of offending "public chastity and insulting" law enforcement officers.

On Saturday, judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said Khodayari "had clearly confessed her mistake during questioning, accepted it and expressed regret". He did not give further details.

Esmaili, who was quoted by the judiciary's Mizan Online website, said no sentence had been issued against her since there had been no trial to begin with.

The spokesman also dismissed reports she had been told she would be jailed for six months as "fabricated rumours and hearsay".

Esmaili said such reports "stirred public opinion" and provided material for "foreigners and enemies" of Iran.

Despite the boycott calls following her death, Khodayari's father told Mehr news agency that she did not "sacrifice" herself for any cause.

Iran has come under pressure from FIFA to allow women to attend qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup, and was reportedly given a deadline of August 31 to comply.

The sports ministry said last month that women fans would be allowed into the stadium when Team Melli -- as the national team are known -- play their next home qualifier on October 10.

Clerics argue that Iran's ban on women attending sports events is to protect them from the masculine atmosphere and sight of semi-clad men.

Related Article:

Saudi to allow women into stadium for national day

US citizens among nine held in Saudi crackdown: activists

Yahoo – AFP, April 5, 2019

A file photo taken in September 2016 of Saudi activist Aziza al-Yousef, temporarily
 released last week but who remains on trial with other women's rights campaigners
(AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

Dubai (AFP) - Saudi Arabia has arrested at least nine writers and academics, including two US citizens, in an apparent crackdown on supporters of detained women activists whose trial has drawn global censure, campaigners said Friday.

News of the arrests came the morning after US lawmakers voted to end military support for a Saudi-led war in neighbouring Yemen, which has triggered what the UN describes as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

It also marks the first major crackdown since the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last October, which sparked unprecedented international scrutiny of the kingdom's human rights record.

Campaigners identified the US-Saudi dual nationals as writer and doctor Bader al-Ibrahim and Salah al-Haidar, the son of Aziza al-Yousef -- a high-profile activist who was temporarily released last week but remains on trial along with other women campaigners.

The latest round up started on Thursday, a day after the 11 women -- some of whom accused interrogators of torture and sexual abuse in detention -- returned to court to face charges that include contact with foreign media, diplomats and human rights groups.

London-based rights group ALQST identified eight arrested writers, bloggers and academics -- including a pregnant woman -- adding that the crackdown was linked to their support of female activists on trial.

Another public intellectual, university lecturer Anas al-Mazrou, was detained last month after he expressed solidarity with the detained women during a panel discussion at the Riyadh book fair, it added.

Prisoners of Conscience, a Saudi group that tracks political prisoners, put the number of people arrested at 10.

A State Department official confirmed that two US citizens were arrested, but refused to give more details due to "privacy considerations".

"When a US citizen is arrested abroad, the Department of State works to provide all appropriate consular assistance and seek access to the citizen without delay," the official said.

"We have already engaged the Saudi government in this regard."

Many of those arrested face travel bans, campaigners said.

The murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has left the oil-rich Gulf kingdom

facing increased scrutiny over human rights (AFP Photo/MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH)

"Saudi authorities seem to be hell-bent on silencing anyone who dares to speak up or even voice their opinions privately and publicly," Amnesty International's Middle East campaigns director Samah Hadid told AFP.

"This goes beyond just attacking activists and now seems to target different segments of society. This is a dangerous pattern."

Pressure to stay silent 

"What is disturbing about new Saudi arrests is that waves of arrests keep moving from most-known to successively lesser knowns," Saudi-American activist Nora Abdulkarim said on Twitter.

"Another confusing aspect is timing, leaves one asking: 'why now?'"

Riyadh has faced pressure from major Western powers to release the women on trial, most of whom were detained last summer in a wide-ranging crackdown against activists just before the historic lifting of a decades-long ban on female motorists.

Three of them -- activist Aziza al-Yousef, blogger Eman al-Nafjan and preacher Rokaya al-Mohareb -- were granted temporary release last week.

Before their provisional release, the three freed women and their bail guarantors were made to sign a pledge that they will stay away from the media, according to multiple people with access to the trial.

The siblings of one of the prominent detainees, activist Loujain al-Hathloul, this week said they were being pressured by people close to the Saudi state to stay silent over her treatment in detention.

People close to the Saudi establishment have warned that public criticism by family members could prolong their detention.

"A reminder: we are not going to stay silent," Loujain's sister Alia al-Hathloul tweeted on Friday.

At an emotionally charged hearing last week, some women broke down as they accused interrogators of subjecting them to electric shocks, flogging and groping in detention, two people with access to the trial told AFP.

A Saudi prosecutor roundly rejected the accusations in the latest court hearing on Wednesday, witnesses said, reiterating the government's stance.

The next hearing in the trial, which foreign media and diplomats are barred from attending, is scheduled for April 17, activists say.

Saudi woman held at Bangkok airport says fears death if repatriated

Yahoo – AFP, 6 January 2019

Rahaf told AFP she was stopped by Saudi and Kuwaiti officials when she
arrived in Suvarnabhumi airport

A Saudi woman held at Bangkok airport said she would be killed if she was repatriated by Thai immigration officials, who confirmed the 18-year-old was denied entry to the country Sunday.

Rahaf Mohammed M Alqunun told AFP she was stopped by Saudi and Kuwaiti officials when she arrived in Suvarnabhumi airport and her travel document was forcibly taken from her, a claim backed by Human Rights Watch.

"They took my passport," she told AFP, adding that her male guardian had reported her for traveling "without his permission".

Rahaf said she was trying to flee her family, who subjected her to physical and psychological abuse.

"My family is strict and locked me in a room for six months just for cutting my hair," she said, adding that she is certain she will be imprisoned if she is sent back.

"I'm sure 100 percent they will kill me as soon as I get out of the Saudi jail," she said, adding that she was "scared" and "losing hope".

Rahaf was stopped from entering Thailand when she flew in from Kuwait on Sunday, Thailand's immigration chief Surachate Hakparn told AFP.

"She had no further documents such as return ticket or money," he said, adding that Rahaf was currently in an airport hotel.

"She ran away from her family to avoid marriage and she is concerned she may be in trouble returning to Saudi Arabia. We sent officials to take care of her now," he said.

He added that Thai authorities had contacted the "Saudi Arabia embassy to coordinate".

But Rahaf disputed his account, saying that she was in transit to seek asylum in Australia, where she claimed to have a visa, and was accosted by Saudi and Kuwaiti embassy representatives when she deplaned in Suvarnabhumi airport.

Human Rights Watch Asia deputy director Phil Robertson decried the actions of the Thai authorities.

"What country allows diplomats to wander around the closed section of the airport and seize the passports of the passengers?" he said, adding that there is "impunity" within the family unit in Saudi Arabia to abuse women.

Immigration head Surachate said Rahaf would be sent back to Saudi Arabia by Monday morning.

"It's a family problem," he said of the case.

Another Saudi woman, Dina Ali Lasloom, was stopped in transit in the Philippines in April 2017 when she attempted to flee her family.

An airline security official told activists that Lasloom was heard "screaming and begging for help" as men carried her "with duct tape on her mouth, feet and hands" at the airport.

The Saudi embassy in Thailand and officials in Riyadh could not be reached for immediate comment.

A military junta has ruled Thailand since 2014, and with rumors that an election could be delayed again, protesters say enough is enoughhttps://t.co/z51Yalkuyw pic.twitter.com/tAJ2Ww6dUA

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 6, 2019

Khashoggi murder: US hits 17 Saudis with sanctions

Yahoo – AFP, November 15, 2018

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was excluded from a list of 17 people
hit with US sanctions over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but two
top aides were on it (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

Washington (AFP) - The United States on Thursday placed punishing economic sanctions on 17 Saudis allegedly involved in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, including top aides of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The sanctions were declared after Riyadh's public prosecutor announced that five officials face a possible death sentence in the case but exculpated the prince.

"The Saudi officials we are sanctioning were involved in the abhorrent killing of Jamal Khashoggi. These individuals who targeted and brutally killed a journalist who resided and worked in the United States must face consequences for their actions," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

The sanctions came amid widespread anger among Saudi allies over the killing and dismemberment of Khashoggi on October 2 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Khashoggi, 59, was a veteran Saudi journalist who wrote for the Washington Post and other international media. He had become one of the leading public critics of Prince Mohammed, whose father is the Saudi king.

The 17 included Saud Al-Qahtani and Maher Mutreb, key aides of the powerful prince, and Mohammed Alotaibi, who was the consul general in the Istanbul consulate when Khashoggi was murdered.

The US Treasury said Qahtani, Prince Mohammed's long-time right-hand man, "was part of the planning and execution of the operation" to kill Khashoggi.

But it did not point any fingers at Prince Mohammed, who the Saudi government has insisted did not order the killing.

The sanctions, which fall under the US Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, freeze any assets those blacklisted have under US jurisdiction, and forbid Americans and US companies from doing business with them.

Under heavy pressure from the United States, Britain, France and Turkey, Riyadh has admitted that Khashoggi was murdered in the consulate and said it would punish those involved.

Earlier Thursday the state prosecutor's office announced that 21 individuals had been taken into custody and charges set against 11 of them.

Five of them face possible execution for the murder, according to the prosecutor.

Mnuchin said Washington would persist in pressuring Riyadh for justice in the case.

"The United States continues to diligently work to ascertain all of the facts and will hold accountable each of those we find responsible in order to achieve justice for Khashoggi's fiancée, children, and the family he leaves behind," he said in a statement.

"The Government of Saudi Arabia must take appropriate steps to end any targeting of political dissidents or journalists."

King tours Saudi as Khashoggi crisis rages abroad

Yahoo – AFP, November 6, 2018

A handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace on December 13, 2017, shows
King Salman arriving for the opening of the Shura Council ordinary session in Riyadh
(AFP Photo/BANDAR AL-JALOUD)

Riyadh (AFP) - Saudi King Salman embarked on an unprecedented domestic tour on Tuesday as the country grapples with an international crisis over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The 82-year-old monarch was joined by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the central province of Qassim, according to state television, as he started what Saudi media dubbed a tour of "several regions" in the kingdom.

The king was also set to visit the northern region of Hail in his first such tour since he ascended to the most powerful throne in the Middle East in 2015, the pro-government Sabq newspaper reported.

In Qassim, the king will launch health, education and infrastructure projects as well as check on "the conditions of citizens and get acquainted with their needs", the Saudi Gazette newspaper said.

It was unclear whether Prince Mohammed will accompany him for the remainder of the tour, which comes as Saudi Arabia faces international outrage over Khashoggi's murder on October 2 in its consulate in Istanbul.

After first insisting Khashoggi left the consulate unharmed, Saudi authorities said he was killed in an argument that degenerated into a brawl before finally accepting what Turkey had said virtually from the start -- that he was killed in a premeditated hit.

It is widely seen as the worst diplomatic crisis facing the kingdom since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

The murder has tainted the global image of 33-year-old Prince Mohammed -- the de facto ruler and heir apparent -- even though the kingdom strongly denies he was involved.

Saudi rulers appear to be shoring up support domestically, including within the royal family, following the crisis.

King Salman last month ordered the resumption of annual bonus payments to all government workers from the beginning of next year. The bonuses had been suspended under austerity measures in 2016 amid low oil prices.

In recent weeks, Saudi nationalists have sought to rally around the prince with adulatory poems and songs on social media, as local officials have dismissed the Khashoggi crisis as a Western conspiracy.

Khashoggi criticizes Saudi prince in newly released interview

Yahoo – AFP, 20 October 2018

Saudi Arabia said journalist Jamal Khashoggi died when talks at its Istanbul
consulate deteriorated into a "brawl and a fistfight"

Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi criticized Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's "authoritarian rule" shortly before his death, in an interview published following confirmation he died at the kingdom's Istanbul consulate.

Speaking off the record to a Newsweek journalist working on a story about the Saudi leadership, he insisted he did not view himself as "an opposition" -- he just wanted "a better Saudi Arabia".

"I'm not calling for the overthrow of the regime, because I know it's not possible and is too risky, and there is no one to overthrow the regime," Khashoggi said.

"I'm just calling for reform of the regime."

He described Prince Mohammed as "an old-fashioned tribal leader" out of touch with Saudi's poor.

"Sometimes I feel that ... he wants to enjoy the fruits of First World modernity and Silicon Valley and cinemas and everything, but at the same time he wants also to rule like how his grandfather ruled Saudi Arabia," Khashoggi told Newsweek.

"He still doesn't see the people. When he sees the people, that's when the actual reform will start."

Khashoggi also criticized Prince Mohammed's lack of "proper advisers".

"He is moving toward a Saudi Arabia according to him, a Saudi Arabia according to Mohammed bin Salman only," said Khashoggi, who was himself a contributor to the Washington Post newspaper.

Khashoggi described two of the prince's aides -- sports chief Turki al-Sheikh and the since-dismissed media adviser Saud al-Qahtani -- as "very thuggish".

"People fear them. You challenge them, you might end up in prison, and that has happened," he said.

Khashoggi was last seen on October 2 entering his country's consulate in Istanbul.

His disappearance had been shrouded in mystery, with Turkish officials accusing Saudi Arabia of carrying out a state-sponsored killing and dismembering the body.

Saudi Arabia finally admitted early Saturday that Khashoggi had died inside the consulate in what it described as a "brawl".

The admission -- after persistent claims by the Saudi authorities that Khashoggi had left the consulate alive -- came following the threat of US sanctions.

The Saudi authorities have not yet said where his body is.

In the Newsweek interview, Khashoggi, whose disappearance tipped Saudi Arabia into one of its worst international crises, said pushback from the international community was vital to keeping the Saudi regime in check.

"That is our only hope," he said.

Related Article:

Saudi prince's image seen at risk over missing critic

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is facing a backlash over the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi from business and media previously supportive of his reform drive, with partnerships at risk and big names boycotting a major conferencehttps://t.co/wR8a5nIeEK

— AFP news agency (@AFP) October 12, 2018

Saudi Arabia admits #JamalKhashoggi was killed inside its Istanbul consulate, saying he died during a "brawl"https://t.co/vOo8csYVEX pic.twitter.com/Qx6bCOiQN0

— AFP news agency (@AFP) October 20, 2018