Saudi government gives houses to Khashoggi children as ‘compensation’ for father’s death

Saudi journalist was murdered last year inside Saudi consulate in Istanbul

Saudi Arabia has given the children of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi properties worth millions of pounds and a monthly stipend as “compensation” for killing their father, according to a new report.

Former Saudi officials said the payments were part of an effort by the kingdom to buy the silence of Khashoggi’s two sons and two daughters, according to The Washington Post.

The houses given to the children are located in the port city of Jeddah and are worth up to $4m (£3.4m), the newspaper reported.

The newspaper said the family may receive even higher payments that could amount to tens of millions of pounds as part of “blood money” negotiations when the trial of Khashoggi’s accused killers concludes.

The report comes as Saudi Arabia is still dealing with the fallout from the dissident’s killing, which drew global condemnation and damaged the country’s relationship with key allies.

Khashoggi, a well-known Saudi journalist who wrote articles that were critical of the Saudi government and crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, went missing on 2 October after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Saudi Arabia initially insisted that Khashoggi had left the consulate, but after a steady stream of leaks by Turkish investigators, it said the 59-year-old was killed there in a “fist fight”.

Turkish and international investigators say Khashoggi was murdered inside the consulate and his body disposed of. Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur leading an independent human rights inquiry into the killing, said Khashoggi’s murder was “planned and perpetrated by Saudi officials”.

The Saudi public prosecutor indicted 11 unidentified suspects in November, including five who could face the death penalty on charges of ordering and committing the crime.

The CIA and some western countries believe the crown prince, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, ordered the killing – which Saudi officials deny.

Of Khashoggi’s four children, only one still resides in Saudi Arabia. Salah Khashoggi reportedly plans to continue living there, while the other three currently reside in the US and will sell their Saudi assets. So far, the family have been restrained in their criticism of the government.

“His desire to remain in Jeddah with his family has contributed to the siblings’ deference to the authorities and caution in their public statements over the past six months,” The Washington Post reported.

The Post cited one former official as saying that the properties and monthly payments of more than $10,000 were part of an acknowledgement that “a big injustice has been done”.

A Saudi official told the newspaper on record that “such support is part of our custom and culture. It is not attached to anything else”.