NOS News•today, 13:56
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American human rights activist Asim Ghafoor will not have to spend years in prison in the United Arab Emirates for tax evasion and money laundering. A court has lifted that sentence, his lawyer told Reuters news agency.
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Ghafoor must pay a fine of 475,000 euros. Nearly 4.8 million euros is also seized in his account. That corresponds to the amount he has laundered according to the authorities. It is not clear whether Ghafoor has since been released.
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Arrested in Dubai
Ghafoor was a lawyer for Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist who was murdered by Saudis in 2018 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. He was convicted in absentia in May. The American became arrested in Dubai when he was on his way to Turkey.
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According to the United Arab Emirates, an investigation into Ghafoor was launched at the request of the US authorities. The US has not confirmed that and says that Ghafoor has not been detained at Washington’s request.
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Political motive
Ghafoor helped Khashoggi found the human rights organization Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), of which Ghafoor is also a board member. That organization called the conviction of the activist politically motivated. According to DAWN, it happens more often that foreigners who are critical of the United Arab Emirates are arrested for alleged malpractice.
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A number of US politicians have also suggested that there is a political motive, because of Ghafoor’s ties to Khashoggi. The US State Department said it had no indications. The authorities in the United Arab Emirates also say that it is purely a financial crime.
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