White House seeks to delay decision on Prince Mohammed immunity over Khashoggi murder
Source: The Guardian
White House seeks to delay decision on Prince Mohammed immunity over Khashoggi murder
Request comes after Biden returns from Saudi trip in which he claims to have raised journalist’s murder with crown prince
Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington
@skirchy
Mon 18 Jul 2022 22.37 BST
Last modified on Mon 18 Jul 2022 22.53 BST
The Biden administration asked a US judge for a 60-day extension before it formally weighed in on whether Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi crown prince, ought to be granted sovereign immunity in a case involving the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
The Department of Justice said in a filing before a US district court that it had initiated a “decision-making process” about whether it would file a statement of interest in the case but that it would not be able to comply with the court’s requested deadline of 1 August.
“The United States is diligently considering the Court’s inquiry but the process for doing so requires consultation among multiple entities within the Executive Branch with respect to complex issues of international and domestic law,” the filing said.
The judge in the case granted the US government its request and gave it until 3 October to submit a statement of interest.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jul/18/prince-mohammed-jamal-khashoggi-immunity-white-house
No-registration link: https://news.yahoo.com/white-house-seeks-delay-decision-213748573.html