Georgetown university law center, University in Washington, D.C., United States

The United States on Friday (local time) imposed visa restrictions on 76 Saudi individuals who are believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas.In a statement just after a US report implicted Saudi's crown prince Muhammed bin Salman of approving the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, US State Secretary Antony Blinken announced the "Khashoggi Ban," a new visa restriction policy.While the United States remains invested in its relationship with Saudi Arabia, Blinken said that President Joe Biden has made it clear that partnership must reflect US values."To that end, we have made absolutely clear that extraterritorial threats and assaults by Saudi Arabia against activists, dissidents, and journalists must end. They will not be tolerated by the United States," the statement read.The Khashoggi ban will allow the State Department to impose visa restrictions on individuals who, "acting on behalf of a foreign government, are believed to have been directly engaged in serious, extraterritorial counter-dissident activities, including those that suppress, harass, surveil, threaten, or harm journalists, activists, or other persons perceived to be dissidents for their work, or who engage in such activities with respect to the families or other close associates of such persons".To start with, Blinken said that the US Department of State has taken action pursuant to the Khashoggi Ban to impose visa restrictions on 76 Saudi individuals believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas, including but not limited to the Khashoggi killing.Khashoggi, who was a vocal critic of the Saudi regime, was killed on October 2, 2018 in Turkey where he had gone to obtain paperwork certifying his divorce from his former wife Alaa Nassif in order to be able to marry his Turkish fiancee Hatice Cengiz.Blinken said that the world was horrified by the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who paid with his life to express his beliefs."Individuals should be able to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms without fear of government retribution, retaliation, punishment, or harm. Jamal Khashoggi paid with his life to express his beliefs. President Biden said in a statement released last October on the second anniversary of the murder that Khashoggi's death would not be in vain, and that we owe it to his memory to fight for a more just and free world," the statement read."Today, the Biden-Harris Administration submitted an unclassified report to Congress, providing transparency on this horrific killing. Alongside the transmission of that report, and as part of the President's pledge, the United States Government is announcing additional measures to reinforce the world's condemnation of that crime, and to push back against governments that reach beyond their borders to threaten and attack journalists and perceived dissidents for exercising their fundamental freedoms," the statement further read.The report said that Crown Prince Salman approved an operation in Istanbul, Turkey to capture or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.The report 'Assessing the Saudi Government Role in the Killing of Jamal Khashoggi' was released on Friday (local time) by the US' Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)."We assess that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman approved an operation in Istanbul, Turkey to capture or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi," the report read.The report was released a day after US President Joe Biden had a telephonic conversation with Saudi King Salman, though a White House summary of the conversation made no mention of the killing.( With inputs from ANI )Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

Georgetown University Law CenterFOLLOW

Georgetown university law center, Latest News

The United States and Taiwan on Thursday (local time) partnered with the Eswatini government to identify private sector opportunities to strengthen the information technology sector in Mbabane. ...

Buckingham Palace on Wednesday announced that it will be launching a probe into the bullying allegations against the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle. ...

The United States on Wednesday (local time) welcomed the steps taken by India to return the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir to full economic and political normalcy consistent with the country's democratic values. ...

Washington, March 4 With a third Covid-19 vaccine now authorized for emergency use, US states are ramping up ... ...

Expressing solidarity with the Uyghur community amid the ongoing human rights abuse by the Chinese authorities, US Speaker Nancy Pelosi has affirmed her view that the United States has an "obligation to address the genocide". ...

The United States public opinion on China has plunged to a historic low, as Gallup's latest poll revealed that only 20 per cent of Americans hold a favourable view about the Asian country, amid worsening relations between Washington and Beijing. ...

The United States is concerned over the reports of humanitarian crisis in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, said Secretary of State Antony Blinken while calling for immediate withdrawal of Eritrean forces and Amhara regional forces from Tigray. ...

The United States on Friday (local time) imposed visa restrictions on 76 Saudi individuals who are believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas. ...