UN Rights Office Says Khashoggi Trial Fell Short On Transparency, Accountability

By Staff, Agencies

The Saudi trial into the killing of critic Jamal Khashoggi lacked transparency and fell short on assigning accountability for the crime, the United Nations [UN] human rights office said Tuesday.

A Saudi Arabian court Monday jailed eight people for between seven and 20 years for the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported, four months after his family reportedly ‘forgave his killers and enabled death sentences to be set aside.’

UN spokesman Rupert Colville, noting that the UN opposes the death penalty, told a Geneva briefing: "This is case where there has not been proper transparency in the justice process, those responsible should be prosecuted and given sentences commensurate with the crime."

"There is a whole issue of transparency and accountability in the case," he added.