A French magistrate was appointed on May 16, 2026, to investigate the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, following complaints filed against Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Saudi Arabia by human rights groups [1, 2, 3]. The inquiries focus on charges of torture and enforced disappearance tied to the journalist’s murder inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018, where Khashoggi was strangled and dismembered by Saudi agents [1, 2, 3].
The Paris Court of Appeal ruled on May 11, 2026, that complaints filed by Trial International and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) were admissible, paving the way for the judicial inquiry [1, 2, 3]. However, a separate complaint by Khashoggi’s employer, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), was declared inadmissible by the prosecutor's office, though some sources maintain it helped trigger the case [1, 2, 3].
Mohammed bin Salman has denied ordering the killing but acknowledged it happened "under my watch," according to reports [2]. The case has faced multiple legal hurdles, including a Turkish court’s 2022 decision to halt the trial of 26 Saudi suspects and transfer it to Saudi Arabia, and dismissed U.S. civil lawsuits where immunity was granted to the Crown Prince [2].
Emmanuel Daoud, lawyer for Reporters Without Borders, described the killing as "an abominable crime, decided and planned at the highest level of the Saudi state, which had a journalist executed who was a dissident and independent voice" [1]. Henri Thulliez, a lawyer with Trial International, said, "There should no longer be any obstacle to opening a judicial investigation into the atrocious crime committed against Jamal Khashoggi" [1].
Under French law, investigations can be opened for serious crimes committed abroad, though prosecutions typically require suspects to be present in France [2]. The French inquiry marks a new chapter after previous efforts stalled in other jurisdictions.
The judge's appointment follows the May 11 ruling and could lead to further legal proceedings should sufficient evidence warrant prosecution under French law [1, 2, 3].
