Saudi Court sentenced five to death over murder of Jamal Khashoggi

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A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced five people to death for the murder of a journalist, Jamal Khashoggi.

Mr Khashoggi, a Saudi national and U.S. resident, was killed inside the Saudi consulate in October 2018.

His body, believed to have been dismembered, has not been found.

Many observers including the American CIA believe the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed Bin Salman, authorised the killing of the journalist.

The crown prince has, however, denied any role in it.

Apart from the five sentenced to death in the secret trial, Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor also said on Monday that three more people were sentenced to jail terms totalling 24 years, AlJazeera reports.

He said Saud al-Qahtani, a former high-profile Saudi royal adviser, was investigated but not charged and was released.

Mr Khashoggi was a U.S. resident and Washington Post columnist who was critical of the Saudi crown prince.

After his murder, Saudi Arabia initially said he went into the consulate but later came out and was not killed in the consulate. The Saudi government dilly-dallied with false narratives for several days before eventually admitting its officials killed Mr Khashoggi inside the consulate after he entered the building on October 2, 2018, to obtain documentation certifying he had divorced his ex-wife so he could remarry.

The Saudi government has refused to release his body or state where it was kept.