A British judge has ruled that a case once morest the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia can be proceeded by an opponent who accused Riyadh of spying on him using the “Pegasus” program and physically assaulting him by agents of the Kingdom in London.
newspaper said “The GuardianThe decision will open the door for other victims to file similar lawsuits once morest foreign governments ordering such attacks.
She added that the Saudi activist, Ghanem Al-Dosari, also known as Ghanem Al-Masarir, is the one who filed the lawsuit once morest the Saudi government.
Al-Dosari, a prominent satirist who was granted asylum in the United Kingdom several years ago, is known for his public criticism of the royal family in his country, through videos on his YouTube channel.
Al-Dosari claimed that the Saudi authorities had ordered his phone to be hacked and that he was physically assaulted by agents of the kingdom in London in 2018.
The newspaper pointed out that researchers at the University of Toronto specialized in tracking and monitoring espionage operations once morest activists and opponents, confirmed the targeting and penetration of Al-Dosari’s phone by a network that may be linked to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
She added that the Saudi authorities may appeal once morest the court’s decision, which rejected the kingdom’s first attempt not to proceed with the case on the grounds that it enjoys the protection of sovereign immunity under British law.
But the judge found that Al-Dosari might continue his legal proceedings once morest his country under an exception to the Sovereign Immunity Law, which applies to any act by a foreign country that causes personal harm.
The judge also found that Al-Dosari provided sufficient evidence to conclude that Saudi Arabia was responsible for the physical assault on him.
Al-Dosari praised the decision, and said that the espionage operations and the physical assault on him had a profound impact on his life.
He added, “I no longer feel safe when I look back constantly… I no longer feel that I am able to speak on behalf of the oppressed Saudi people, because I fear that any contact with people inside the kingdom might put them at risk.”
Al-Dosari, 40, is now living in fear for his life of assassination or kidnapping from his place of residence in London, where he no longer walks without pepper spray with him, and even fears drinking coffee in public restaurants for fear of poisoning, according to a report. It was published by the New York Times in 2020.
In October 2018, the British police installed an alarm system (panic button) in the home of the Saudi activist, following warnings of dangers to his life, without knowing their source.
He also discovered during the last period that his cell phones and computers were infiltrated with the Pegasus virus, which was developed by an Israeli company and used by some entities for the purpose of turning smartphones into spy tools on their users, which were directly linked to the Saudi government.
Al-Dosari, on his YouTube account, criticizes, in a sarcastic manner, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the Riyadh authorities, and his blog has more than 300 million views.
