Ryad (AFP)

The children of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist murdered in October 2018 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, announced Friday that they have forgiven their father's killers.

"We, the sons of martyr Jamal Khashoggi, announce that we forgive those who killed our father," wrote Salah Khashoggi, son of former Washington Post reporter, on Twitter.

The legal consequences of this announcement by Salah Khashoggi, who resides in Saudi Arabia, are still unknown.

Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi regime after being close to it, was assassinated and his body cut into pieces on October 2, 2018 at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul where he went to retrieve a document.

According to Turkey, Khashoggi was strangled and his body was dismembered during a mission operated by a team of fifteen people. The 59-year-old editorialist's remains have never been found.

After denying the assassination and then putting forward several contradictory versions, the authorities in Riyadh claimed that it had been committed by Saudi agents who had acted alone and without orders from senior leaders.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known as MBS, was chosen by Turkish and American officials to be the sponsor of the murder. He later said he was responsible for the murder but denied knowing it before it was committed.

After an opaque trial in Saudi Arabia, five Saudis were sentenced to death and three sentenced to prison terms. Eleven people had been charged.

Salah Khashoggi said he had "full confidence" in the Saudi judicial system, criticizing opponents who he said were seeking to exploit the case.

The Washington Post wrote in April 2019 that the children of the murdered journalist, including Salah, had received multi-million dollar homes and were paid thousands of dollars a month by the authorities. The family then denied.

A month ago, Turkish justice launched proceedings against twenty people including two close to MBS, ex-adviser Saoud al-Qahtani and the former intelligence number two, General Ahmed al-Assiri, identified as the sponsors of the murder.

© 2020 AFP