US Judge Rejects Lawsuit Against Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince

President Joe Biden with Prince MbS. (Source: SPA)

JAKARTA - A United States federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) over the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, after President Joe Biden's Administration ruled he has impunity.

Last month, the US government under President Joe Biden decided Prince MBS had immunity from prosecution over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

On Tuesday, a federal judge in Washington ruled that the court must bow to the executive branch of government in the case.

But US District Judge John Bates wrote that the court had "discomfort" with the circumstances of Prince Mohammed's appointment and the charges against him regarding Khashoggi's killing.

Prince MbS was only appointed prime minister – and therefore technical head of government – ​​at the end of September. Bates noted the "suspicious timing" of the prince's appointment and the plaintiffs' argument that until recently, only the king had been the nation's prime minister.

"Thus, a contextual look at the (Saudi Arabia's) Royal Order suggests it was not motivated by bin Salman's desire to be head of government, but rather to protect him from potential responsibilities in this case," Bates wrote, citing CNN.

When the State Department suggested MBS be granted immunity last month, it called Khashoggi's horrific murder at the Saudi Arabian Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey heinous, but argued Prince MbS should be granted immunity because of his "uninterrupted practice" of granting him to heads of foreign governments.

"The United States has consistently, and across governments, applied these principles to heads of state, heads of government and foreign ministers while they are in office," deputy State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

Had the administration not made that recommendation, Bates wrote on Tuesday, the court would have considered the argument that the case against MbS should not be dismissed. Otherwise, going against the government's wishes would be "too intrusive" on their diplomatic responsibilities.

"This is a legal decision made by the Department of State under the long-established principles of customary international law," a White House National Security Council spokesman said in a written statement.

As previously reported, the Crown Prince denied ordering Khashoggi's killing but later said it happened "under my watch".

Khashoggi was killed on October 2, 2018, after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Saudi Arabia says the killing was an operation without permission by security officials and the kingdom has since reformed the leadership of its main intelligence agency, to prevent such incidents from happening again.