A/HRC/41/CRP.1 have personally exhorted members of the team to return Mr. Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia. He accused Mr. Khashoggi of being a national security threat. (e) The evidence suggests that the murder was premeditated and that the direction from superiors was to kill Mr. Khashoggi, at the very least if he would not agree to return. At a minimum, however, given the size and nature of the mission, a kidnapping was planned – a violation under international human rights law - and those who planned or endorsed the mission willingly accepted the risk of death or serious injury to Mr. Khashoggi during the commission of that crime. (f) There is no evidence that Saud Alqahtani at any point attempted to prevent crimes during the campaign against activists or during the mission targeting Mr. Khashoggi. There is similarly no evidence that he took steps to punish subordinates for any crimes that were committed. (g) The firing of Saud Alqahtani reflects some acknowledgement by the Government of Saudi Arabia of his involvement and responsibility. His criminal responsibility should be investigated further. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman 255. The Special Rapporteur understands the extreme sensitivity of considering the criminal responsibility of a person who, in conjunction with his father, the King, is running the operations of the State of Saudi Arabia. Academic research on Saudi Arabia tends to suggest that the level of control exerted by the Crown Prince over the management of the country’s political, security and economic affairs is extremely high. The Crown Prince is less subject to the constraints that historically distributed power amongst the Royal Family and the Court. 256. She also recognizes the unlikelihood that individuals still under the Crown Prince’s control, would testify as to his involvement. Addressing this inherent difficulty is one of the primary purposes of the theories of criminal liability articulated and implemented since the days of Nuremberg: they are designed to ensure that no person, no matter his status, has impunity. 257. The information available to the Special Rapporteur indicates that there are reasonable grounds to believe the following: (a) Based on her inquiry, the Special Rapporteur has found that Mr. Khashoggi was himself fully aware of the powers held by the Crown Prince, and fearful of him. Witnesses report that various Saudi emissaries (including Saud Alqahtani) did attempt to convince Mr. Khashoggi to return to Saudi Arabia, with promises of work and a position. They further report that Mr. Khashoggi expressed fear about what would happen to him, should he return. He himself stated that much in private communications subsequently made public. (b) In the years preceding the execution of Mr. Khashoggi, United Nations Special Procedures and international human rights organisations reported a large number of arbitrary detentions of journalists and human rights defenders, but also Princes, businessmen and one Head of State231. The operation against Mr. Khashoggi has to be understood in relation to this organized and coordinated crack-down, one that included repeated unlawful acts of torture and physical harm. At a bare minimum, Crown Prince condoned this behavior and allowed the repetition and escalation of these crimes. He took no action to prevent or punish those responsible. The Crown Prince willingly took the risk that other crimes, such as the killing of Mr. Khashoggi, would be committed, whether or not he directly ordered the specific crime.232 231 232 52 See, e.g. https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=23967; https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=24291 At the time of writing, there are reports of new arbitrary detentions. Prosecutor v. Tadić, Case No. IT-94-1-A, Appeals Chamber (15 July 1999), para. 220.