The relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia has received wide-spread scrutiny after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, reported by U.S. intelligence as linked back to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman but denied by the Saudi government. Another issue related to the actions of the Saudi government involves Saudi students escaping prosecution for crimes committed during periods of study in the U.S. With 40,000 students from Saudi Arabia in the U.S., there are those who are bound to get into some type of legal trouble and they should face U.S. courts.
Two Oregon senators have proposed legislation to investigate the Saudi government's involvement in helping their students escape prosecution. Jeff Merkley, one of the sponsors of the bill said that "Saudi Arabia's blatant disrespect for international norms cannot be allowed to stand. We need a wholesale rethinking of our relationship with Saudi Arabia - and we should all be able to agree that any nation that helps their citizens escape from the law needs to be held fully accountable."
Thus far only 15 cases of Saudi student cases successfully fleeing prosecution have been documented and the fact that this is a very small number should be recognized. However, no international, student or otherwise, should be able to escape prosecution for crimes committed in the U.S. with the help of their own government.
While some Saudi students may have benefitted from officials intervening to help, others have reported that Saudi Arabia monitors their conduct while studying in the U.S.A. If true, such monitoring would likely result in self-censorship and reluctance to engage in free intellectual discourse.
Two Oregon senators have proposed legislation to investigate the Saudi government's involvement in helping their students escape prosecution. Jeff Merkley, one of the sponsors of the bill said that "Saudi Arabia's blatant disrespect for international norms cannot be allowed to stand. We need a wholesale rethinking of our relationship with Saudi Arabia - and we should all be able to agree that any nation that helps their citizens escape from the law needs to be held fully accountable."
Thus far only 15 cases of Saudi student cases successfully fleeing prosecution have been documented and the fact that this is a very small number should be recognized. However, no international, student or otherwise, should be able to escape prosecution for crimes committed in the U.S. with the help of their own government.
While some Saudi students may have benefitted from officials intervening to help, others have reported that Saudi Arabia monitors their conduct while studying in the U.S.A. If true, such monitoring would likely result in self-censorship and reluctance to engage in free intellectual discourse.
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