PROSECUTOR SEEKS DEATH PENALTY IN KHASHOGGI DEATH

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Saudi Arabia’s top prosecutor said Thursday he would seek the death penalty for five men charged with the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey, while the U.S. moved to sanction 17 Saudi officials it said were involved in the slaying.

The Saudi announcement appeared aimed at distancing the killers and their operation from the kingdom’s leadership, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, amid a global outcry over the death.

Also on Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said the crown prince had “absolutely” nothing to do with Khashoggi’s death.

The U.S. Treasury Department, meanwhile, announced it was imposing sanctions on 17 Saudi officials who it said were responsible for or complicit in the killing.