The Washington city council voted to name the street in front of the Saudi Arabia embassy 'Jamal Khashoggi Way'. Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist, was murdered at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul by Saudi government agents in 2018. Khashoggi's body was never found.
The 700-foot stretch of New Hampshire Avenue that runs between the embassy and the Watergate complex would be named after the slain journalist, who was known to be a critic of the Saudi Royal family. While the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is suspected to have a hand in Khashoggi's murder, the prince has time and again denied any involvement. Khashoggi was working for The Washington Post at the time of his murder.
The Saudi government eventually admitted to the murder under intense international pressure. The Saudi court proceedings, which were open to select western diplomats to sit in on, were not open to independent media to observe.
“Through his journalism, Jamal Khashoggi was a fierce advocate for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law,” said a Washington city council report on the bill. “By designating the street fronting the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia after Jamal Khashoggi, the District is creating a memorial in his honour that cannot be covered up or repressed,” it said.
