Saudi Arabia jails eight over Khashoggi murder
A Saudi Arabian court has jailed eight people for between seven and 20 years for the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported Monday.
The ruling came four months after the Saudi journalist's family forgave his killers, which enabled five death sentences handed down in December to be set aside.
None of the defendants have ever been named officially.
Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was last seen at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, where he had gone to obtain documents for his impending wedding.
His body was reportedly dismembered and removed from the building. His remains were never found.
The murder caused a global uproar and tarnished the reformist image of Prince Mohammed, son of King Salman and the kingdom's de facto ruler.
Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing.
Saudi officials denied he played a role, although the prince has indicated it quote "happened under my watch."
The court previously stated Khashoggi's killing was not premeditated, but carried out on the spur of the moment.
