How the Independent reported on the Khashoggi sentencing

In a case like this, no facts can be taken at face value

Has justice been served for the dissident journalist? No chance (Getty)

On Monday, Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to death over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi – just over one year since his death.

The Independent broke the news and our best correspondents were drafted in. Borzou Daragahi, who has written extensively about the Khashoggi case, wrote up the main story.

Our diplomatic editor, Kim Sengupta, meanwhile, wrote analysis for our premium subscribers, lending his considerable expertise to a subject he too has been following since the beginning.

In a story where the facts cannot be taken at face value, expert writers are all the more important to help to untangle the truth.

Saudi Arabia’s judiciary is obscure and, as Borzou wrote, “led by a prosecutor known above all for his fealty to the country’s powerful crown prince”.

No names were given for those sentenced by the prosecutor. They often are.

There is credible evidence, according to the UN, that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was behind the attack – yet he continues to evade justice.

The 101-page report assembled by Agnes Callamard in June concluded that Khashoggi had been the victim of a “deliberate, premeditated execution, an extrajudicial killing for which the state Saudi Arabia is responsible under international human rights law”.

Monday’s sentencing gives the pretence that justice has been served for the grisly murder, when the reality is anything but.

Bin Salman is able to continue targeting those who oppose him, under the guise that he is holding corrupt, criminal elements in check.

For those who knew Khashoggi, the verdict will not bring closure.

Yours,

Gemma Fox

Deputy international editor