It is the first time the US has officially accused Saudi Arabia of having agents in the country. That's what the Washington Post writes.

The former Twitter employees have, according to the allegations, used the company's internal system to search for information about people who were behind accounts that have expressed critical views on the Saudi royal house.

"We cannot allow American companies or American technology to become a tool for the repression of regimes at the same time as they are contrary to American law," said prosecutor David L. Anderson.

A total of three are prosecuted

According to the Washington Post, one of the defendants has close ties to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

One of the defendants, an American citizen, has spied specifically on three users critical of the government of Saudi Arabia. He is also accused of falsifying an invoice for the purpose of misleading the FBI in its investigation.

The other man charged is a Saudi citizen. He is accused of collecting information on 6,000 Twitter accounts. Among these is the prominent regime opponent Omar Abdulaziz's account. Abdulaziz stood near the now murdered writer Jamal Khashoggi.

A third person is also charged with acting as an intermediary between the two former Twitter employees and the Saudi regime.