Khashoggi Fiancee Sues Saudi Prince in US over Murder

Journalist Jamal Khashoggi's fiancee sued Saudi Arabia's crown prince and other officials in the US court on Tuesday, seeking damages for his gruesome murder in Istanbul two years ago.

Turkish citizen Hatice Cengiz and human rights group Khashoggi founded before his death, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), are chasing Mohammed bin Salman and 28 others for damages in the October 2, 2018 murder of the US-based writer, reports AFP.

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 the Istanbul consulate of Saudi Arabia, and his body was dismembered and disposed of by a team of Saudis, reportedly headed by the right-hand men of the crown prince.

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

But two royal high-ranking assistants, Deputy Chief of Intelligence Ahmed al-Assiri and Chief of the Royal Court of Media Saud al-Qahtani, were exonerated despite links to the murder.

Both the aid workers, those convicted in Saudi Arabia for the murder, and those connected to the plot were named in the lawsuit.

Cengiz and DAWN said they had brought an action before the federal court in Washington, because they saw little hope of justice in Saudi Arabia, notorious for its opaque courts, and Turkish legal experts said that the civil case would not go forward while Ankara was seeking a criminal case against the murder.

A vocal critic of the Riyadh regime, Khashoggi lived near Washington and worked in part for the Washington Post when he was killed.

Cengiz said the two had married under Islamic customs and had prepared a civil marriage.

The suit alleges that the conspiracy against him involved the Saudi embassy in Washington, which ordered him to fly to Istanbul to obtain the documents required for their marriage.

It also says that his murder has harmed the service of the DAWN 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.