Jamal Khashoggi’s son Salah says family forgives killers

The son of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has released a statement via Twitter forgiving his father's killers.

In the statement, posted on Friday, Salah Khashoggi said his family pardons those who took the reporter's life in 2018 when he visited Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul.

"In this blessed night of the blessed month (of Ramadan) we remember God's saying: If a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah."

"Therefore, we the sons of the Martyr Jamal Khashoggi announce that we pardon those who killed our father, seeking reward God almighty" he added.

Khashoggi was last seen at the Saudi consulate where he had gone to get the necessary documents for his wedding. His body was dismembered and removed from the building and his remains have not been found.

Under Islamic law, death sentences in Saudi Arabia can be commuted if the victim's family pardons the perpetrator, but it is not clear whether that will happen in this case.

HaticeCengiz, Khashoggi'sfiance, wrote on Twitter on Friday that "nobody has the right to pardon the killers".

Dhaka/Mukul