US alarmed as Saudi lawsuits threaten to expose secrets
Two lawsuits pitting Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler against a former intelligence czar threaten to expose highly sensitive US government secrets, prompting Washington to consider a rare judicial intervention, documents show.
The cases in US and Canadian courts centre on corruption
allegations levelled by state-owned Saudi companies against Saad Aljabri, a
former spymaster who long worked closely with American officials on covert
counterterrorism operations.
That marks the latest twist in a long-running feud between
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and Aljabri.
Aljabri's patron, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef (MBN), is
currently in Saudi detention after being deposed as heir to the throne in a
2017 palace coup.
The legal drama sheds light on Shakespearean rivalries in
the top echelons of the Saudi royal family, but Washington fears that a bitter
courtroom showdown risks exposing sensitive information related to its covert
operations.
A rare US Justice Department filing in a Massachusetts court
in April noted Aljabri's intention to "describe information concerning
alleged national security activities".
"The (US) government is considering whether and how to
participate in this action, including if necessary and applicable, through an
assertion of appropriate governmental privileges," the filing said,
without elaborating.
In a second filing a month later, the Justice Department
asked the court for more time as national security matters require
"'delicate' and 'complex' judgements by senior officials".
The filing said the government was prepared to "provide
further information" to the court in secret.
Legal experts have said Washington could invoke the
"state secrets privilege", which would allow it to resist a
court-ordered disclosure of information deemed harmful to US national security.
The CIA declined to comment to AFP. The Justice Department,
which experts say only rarely intervenes in civil lawsuits, did not respond to
a request for comment.
Last year, Aljabri alleged in another lawsuit that MBS sent
"Tiger Squad" assassins to kill him in Canada, where he lives in
exile, while detaining two of his children to pressure him to return home.
The feud took a new turn this March when state-run company
Sakab Saudi Holding accused Aljabri of embezzling $3.47 billion while working
at the Ministry of Interior under MBN. It urged the Massachusetts court to
freeze his $29 million Boston property assets.
This came weeks after multiple state-owned companies sued
Aljabri in Toronto on similar allegations. A Canadian court subsequently
announced a worldwide freeze of Aljabri's assets.
While denying any financial wrongdoing, Aljabri's legal team
says he is caught in the rivalry between MBS and MBN, who has not been publicly
seen since his detention in March 2020.
State-run Sakab, which court filings say was established in
2008 by MBN, was part of a network of front companies to provide cover for
clandestine security operations with the United States.
In order to prove his innocence, the court would need to
probe Sakab's finances, including how they were used to "finance sensitive
programs" operated in partnership with the CIA, the US National Security
Agency and the US Defense Department, said a filing by Aljabri.
"Dr Saad would never expose covert counterterrorism
projects that saved thousands of lives, including Americans," a source
close to the former spymaster told AFP.
"Unfortunately, MBS's blind vendetta against Dr Saad
has cornered him in a position where he is compelled to do so in order to
defend himself in court."
While the Justice Department considers moves to prevent any
disclosure of state secrets in Massachusetts, it remains unclear how it could
do the same in the Ontario court, over which it has no direct sway.
The Aljabri source acknowledged any exposure could endanger
"those who participated in (counterterrorism) operations, reveal sources
and methods, and hinder... similar operations in the future".
A US lawyer representing MBS declined to comment on the
litigation.
But a source close to the Saudi leadership repeated
multi-billion dollar corruption allegations, while accusing Aljabri of
"poisoning the Saudi-US relationship".
Several US officials who have worked alongside Aljabri have
voiced support for him, with some acknowledging that he was privy to sensitive
information.
"Dr Saad worked directly with at least the CIA, FBI,
Department of Homeland Security, White House, Department of State, and
Department of the Treasury," former CIA official Philip Mudd wrote in a US
court affidavit.
"When the United States had actionable intelligence or
tactical information, we gave it to Dr Saad."
In its April filing, the Justice Department said it
anticipated engaging with both sides to understand their positions, suggesting
it was keen for an out-of-court settlement.
"The more important thing for me is that MBS is holding
Dr Saad's kids, essentially extorting Dr Saad," Daniel Hoffman, a former
director of the CIA's Middle East division, told AFP.
"That's very much against the humanitarian values of
the United States."
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