Saudi Arabia sentences eight to prison in final Khashoggi murder ruling

A Saudi Arabian court on Monday jailed eight people for between seven and 20 years for the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported, four months after his family forgave his killers and enabled death sentences to be set aside.

Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was last seen at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018, where he had gone to obtain documents for his impending wedding. His body was reportedly dismembered and removed from the building, and his remains have not been found.

The murder caused a global uproar and tarnished the reformist image of Prince Mohammed, son of King Salman and the kingdom’s de facto ruler.

State media reported that five people were handed 20-year prison sentences, one person was sentenced to 10 years and two people were handed seven-year sentences for the killing.

None of the defendants were named.

At an earlier stage of the trial in December, the court sentenced five people to death and three to jail saying then that the killing was not premeditated, but carried out “at the spur of the moment. Again, none of the defendants were named.

Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing.

Saudi officials denied he played a role, though in September 2019 the prince indicated some personal accountability, saying “it happened under my watch”.

In May, the family of the slain journalist said they forgave his murderers, paving the way for a reprieve for the five defendants sentenced to death.

In Saudi Arabia, which lacks a codified legal system and follows Islamic law, forgiveness from a victim’s family in such cases can allow for a formal pardon and a stay of execution.

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Saudi Arabia sentences eight to prison in final Khashoggi murder ruling

A Saudi Arabian court on Monday jailed eight people for between seven and 20 years for the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported, four months after his family forgave his killers and enabled death sentences to be set aside.

Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was last seen at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018, where he had gone to obtain documents for his impending wedding. His body was reportedly dismembered and removed from the building, and his remains have not been found.

The murder caused a global uproar and tarnished the reformist image of Prince Mohammed, son of King Salman and the kingdom’s de facto ruler.

State media reported that five people were handed 20-year prison sentences, one person was sentenced to 10 years and two people were handed seven-year sentences for the killing.

None of the defendants were named.

At an earlier stage of the trial in December, the court sentenced five people to death and three to jail saying then that the killing was not premeditated, but carried out “at the spur of the moment. Again, none of the defendants were named.

Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing.

Saudi officials denied he played a role, though in September 2019 the prince indicated some personal accountability, saying “it happened under my watch”.

In May, the family of the slain journalist said they forgave his murderers, paving the way for a reprieve for the five defendants sentenced to death.

In Saudi Arabia, which lacks a codified legal system and follows Islamic law, forgiveness from a victim’s family in such cases can allow for a formal pardon and a stay of execution.

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Security forces kill high-profile terrorist Wasim Zakaria in North Waziristan operation

Security forces on Monday killed high-profile and wanted terrorist Wasim Zakaria, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Mir Ali where five militants, including Zakaria, were gunned down and 10 were arrested, confirmed the ISPR.

Commander Wasim Zakaria hailed from the Haider Khel area and since September 2019, had been a mastermind of 30 terrorist attacks.

"Terrorist Wasim was involved in target killing activities and the martyrdom of CSS officer Zubaidullah Dawar," said the ISPR in a statement, adding that the militant was also directly involved in attacks on security forces.

He had also attacked an army convoy at Hasu Khel.

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India overtakes Brazil in coronavirus infections, some rail services resume

India overtook Brazil in coronavirus infection numbers on Monday, making it second only to the United States after a record jump, but the government resumed underground train services and announced plans to re-open the Taj Mahal this month.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, faced with a pandemic that is showing no sign of abating, has chosen to end most curbs in a bid to resuscitate an economy in deep trouble after a severe lockdown.

The world’s second-most populous country posted more than 90,000 cases on Monday, taking its tally past 4.2 million, more than 68,000 ahead of Brazil, which will issue its latest figures later in the day.

At current rates, India could exceed the U.S. figure of 6.2 million by next month as the disease spreads from the big cities of Delhi and Mumbai to the vast hinterland where two-thirds of India’s 1.3 billion people live, experts say.

“It’s becoming a double burden now,” Rajib Dasgupta, a professor of community health at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University told Reuters.

“The urban areas are not slowing down, and rural areas are picking up.”

India’s death toll, however, stands at 71,642, far behind the nearly 193,000 dead in the United States and 126,000 in Brazil. The government says the high recovery rates show its strategy of testing, tracing and treatment is working.

Fighting the virus is straining medical facilities around the country. Doctors at Max Smart Super Speciality Hospital, with the largest private COVID-19 facilities in the Indian capital, say they are exhausted and facing staff shortages after nearly six months of relentless work.

There were few commuters as New Delhi resumed metro rail services after a break of more than six months, however.

“I am glad the metro has started. I used to have lot of problems traveling to work before this,” Vijender, a passenger wearing a mask told Reuters partner ANI while traveling in an empty carriage.

Partial metro train services also opened in the western city of Ahmedabad, the northern city of Lucknow and several other places, after nearly six months of suspension over the pandemic.

The Taj Mahal, the world-famous tourist spot in the northern city of Agra, will reopen on Sept. 21, local authorities said, after its previously scheduled re-opening in July was postponed because of high infection numbers in the area.

Only 5,000 people will be allowed in each day, Vasant Swarnkar, an archeological officer said, compared to peak levels of 80,000 visitors who would swarm the 17th century mausoleum built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan for his wife.

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Nokia takes a hit as Samsung secures Verizon 5G deal

Finnish telecom firm Nokia (NOKIA.HE) has suffered a setback after a source close to the matter confirmed it had lost out to Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) on a part of the contract to supply new 5G equipment to Verizon (VZ.N) in the United States.

With this $6.64 billion contract win, Samsung has reinforced its position as a challenger to the dominance of Nokia and its Nordic rival Ericsson (ERICb.ST) in selling telecom gear, after China’s Huawei was barred from bidding for 5G contracts in the United States.

The loss for Nokia comes after its new Chief Executive Pekka Lundmark took the top job in August, but the source said negotiations were going on before he took charge.

A Nokia spokeswoman declined to comment on the loss.

“We play a critical role in enabling Verizon’s 3G and 4G networks and continue to work with them to accelerate innovation in 5G,” she said. “They remain a top three global customer.”

Major telecom firms such as Verizon uses several suppliers for building various parts of a network with radio contracts accounting for a big part of the spending.

Liberum analyst Janardan Menon said the contract loss could impact Nokia’s ability to invest in technology at the same rate at its competition, and rival Ericsson might have even increased its share at Verizon. Liberum has a “hold” rating on Nokia shares.

An Ericsson spokesman declined to comment.

Nokia shares were down 1% in morning trade.

The shares had fallen in July when brokerage JPMorgan said there was a real risk Verizon would reduce its dependence on Nokia as its primary RAN (radio access network) supplier going forward and shift towards Samsung.

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Amazon fined by UK regulator over tardy documents release in Deliveroo probe

Britain’s competition regulator on Monday fined Amazon (AMZN.O) 55,000 pounds ($72,364) after the U.S. online giant delayed an investigation into its purchase of a 16% stake in food platform Deliveroo by failing to provide documents on time.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) finally cleared Amazon’s stake purchase in August - 16 months after the company led a $575 million fundraising in Deliveroo.

The regulator said 189 documents, which included a significant amount of information relevant to its Phase 2 Amazon/Deliveroo merger probe, were not produced until after the initial deadline.

“Although Amazon did ultimately provide all of the information required, the CMA considers that Amazon’s behaviour caused unnecessary delays to the CMA’s investigation,” it added.

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Security forces kill high-profile terrorist Wasim Zakaria in North Waziristan operation

Security forces on Monday killed high-profile and wanted terrorist Wasim Zakaria, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

Security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Mir Ali where five militants, including Zakaria, were gunned down and 10 were arrested, confirmed the ISPR.

Commander Wasim Zakaria hailed from the Haider Khel area and since September 2019, had been a mastermind of 30 terrorist attacks.

"Terrorist Wasim was involved in target killing activities and the martyrdom of CSS officer Zubaidullah Dawar," said the ISPR in a statement, adding that the militant was also directly involved in attacks on security forces.

He had also attacked an army convoy at Hasu Khel.

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