A United States (US) federal court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) over the 2018 killing of American journalist Jamal Khashoggi, days after the Biden administration said the US should grant immunity to MBS because he is a sitting head of state.
District Judge John Bates justified the court’s dismissal by citing the Biden administration’s reasoning that foreign heads of state should be immune from prosecution. “The court has a responsibility to decide preliminary issues, such as jurisdiction, before the merits—however strong the merits may be,” Bates said.
He asserted that since MBS is entitled to head-of-state immunity, the case against the Saudi Crown Prince must be dismissed. Furthermore, he noted that despite the court’s “uneasiness” about MBS’ appointment and his reported involvement in Khashoggi’s murder, the White House informed the court that he is immune.
Biden admin has sought to hide behind legal precedent but the fact is they were privately split on whether or not MBS qualified for head-of-state immunity, as I reported here:https://t.co/vVNxFbHa2d
— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) December 6, 2022
Regarding the co-defendants, Saud Al Qahtani and Ahmed Al Assiri, Bates stated that the court cannot resolve the issue at the moment due to the “absence of any basis to assert personal jurisdiction” over the two high-ranking Saudi officials, who are believed to have been directly involved in Khashoggi’s murder.
The lawsuit was filed by Khashoggi’s fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, after Washington granted immunity to MBS. “Biden saved the murderer by granting immunity,” Cengiz said.
On 17 November, the Biden administration asserted that MBS, who is also Saudi Arabia’s Prime Minster, should be granted immunity as he is a sitting head of state. In a reversal of its policy for holding MBS accountable for his role in the Khashoggi murder, the State Department said “the doctrine of head of state immunity is well established in customary international law and has been consistently recognised in longstanding executive branch practice as a status-based determination that does not reflect a judgment on the underlying conduct at issue in the litigation.”
While the US government, in cahoots with its judiciary, are pursuing - and slowly killing - Julian Assange for revealing US crimes against humanity, US courts are acquitting the Butcher of Ryad. Day by day the US is forfeiting its soft power/moral capital https://t.co/yppkTHeiV1
— Yanis Varoufakis (@yanisvaroufakis) December 7, 2022
Analysts note that the Biden administration’s statement and the court’s decision are an effort by Washington to normalise ties with Riyadh, which have been at their lowest point in decades.
Joe Biden, in line with his policy of protecting human rights, previously blamed MBS for the cold-blooded murder of Khashoggi, imposing sanctions on Saudi officials for Khashoggi’s death and halting military aid to the Kingdom over rights violations in Yemen.
The Saudi leadership was also upset with the US’ hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan, its insistence on reviving the Iran nuclear deal, potentially relaxing sanctions on Tehran, and removing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from the list of terrorist organisations.
Saudi prince who had journalist Jamal Kashoggi murdered and dismembered is given a free pass by a US judge. President Biden had given the prince immunity.
— Steven Donziger (@SDonziger) December 7, 2022
Another shameful failure by US gov't on human rights. @sarahleah1 https://t.co/CPMMCejRnB
This has led the Saudi government to take retaliatory action against the US.
For instance, in October, the Saudi-led Organization of Oil Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) announced a two million bpd production cut. Washington condemned the decision, calling it “short-sighted.” It accused Saudi Arabia of destabilising the global energy market, warning that such a move would raise energy prices. It further argued that Saudi Arabia is willingly helping Russia overcome Western sanctions on Moscow’s energy industry, claiming OPEC’s move would allow Russia to fund its war against Ukraine.
Several Biden administration officials have demanded that Washington end all cooperation with Riyadh in critical areas in response, including halting all weapons supplies and withdrawing US troops. Some officials have even called on Congress to pass the ‘No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels’ (NOPEC) bill, which would allow the US to bring anti-trust lawsuits against countries engaging in oil price fixing and anti-competitive behaviour. Such a move could severely affect OPEC+’s monopoly of global oil supplies.
This is the reality of our world. Press freedom and human rights betrayed. Repeatedly. But still we stand. And still we fight. And we are not defeated. We know the truth. One episode in our struggle for justice for Jamal may have concluded but the battle is not over.
— Agnes Callamard (@AgnesCallamard) December 7, 2022
Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies have rejected the accusations and in a recent OPEC+ meeting said they have no intention of increasing production, noting that the current production cut would continue next year.
In an interview with The Atlantic in March, MBS expressed his frustrations with the Biden administration by saying that the accusation levelled against him regarding Khashoggi’s death was the “worst thing ever to happen” to him. He warned that the Biden administration would only harm Washington’s interests by isolating Riyadh and put the ball in the US President’s court by saying that “it’s up to him [Biden] to think about the interests of America.”
Saudi Arabia has also stepped up economic, defence, and political cooperation with US rival China. In fact, Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to land in the Kingdom today for a three-day visit to boost “strategic ties.”
BREAKING: Sad news for accountability. District court dismissed @DAWNmenaorg lawsuit with Cengiz for murder of #jamalkhashoggi by MBS on jurisdictional grounds. We are consulting w our lawyers on next steps.
— Sarah Leah Whitson (@sarahleah1) December 6, 2022
Our struggle for justice continues.
Khashoggi, who worked as a columnist for The Washington Post, was killed in 2018 after he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to obtain paperwork to marry his Cengiz. The Saudi government, which initially denied any role in his murder, later claimed that he was killed by a team of rogue agents from the Kingdom.