RIYADH – Two suits pitting Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler against a former intelligence tsar threaten to expose highly sensitive United States (US) government secrets, prompting Washington to consider a rare judicial intervention, documents revealed.
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.
This 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 palace coup in 2017.
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,” said the filing, 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 judgments by senior officials”.
The filing said the government is prepared to “provide further information” to the court in secret.
Legal experts said Washington can invoke the “state secrets privilege”, which will 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 said only rarely intervenes in civil suits, did not respond to a request for comment.
“Vendetta”
Last year, Aljabri alleged in another suit 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 US$3.47 billion (RM14.5 billion) while working at the Interior Ministry under MBN. It urged the Massachusetts court to freeze his US$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 said he is caught in the rivalry between MBS and MBN, who has not been publicly seen since his detention in March last year.
State-run Sakab, which court filings said was established by MBN in 2008, was part of a network of front companies to provide cover for clandestine security operations with the US.
To prove his innocence, the court will need to probe Sakab’s finances, including how they were used to “finance sensitive programmes” operated in partnership with the CIA, US National Security Agency and US Defence Department, said a filing by Aljabri.
“Saad will never expose covert counterterrorism projects that saved thousands of lives, including Americans,” said a source close to the former spymaster.
“Unfortunately, MBS’ blind vendetta against Saad has cornered him in a position where he is compelled to do so to defend himself in court.”
“Endanger lives”
While the Justice Department considers moves to prevent any disclosure of state secrets in Massachusetts, it remains unclear how it can do the same in the Ontario court, over which it has no direct sway.
The Aljabri source acknowledged any exposure can 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 multibillion 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.
“Saad worked directly with at least the CIA, FBI, Homeland Security Department, White House, State Department, and Treasury Department,” wrote former CIA official Philip Mudd in a US court affidavit.
“When the US had actionable intelligence or tactical information, we gave it to Saad.”
In its April filing, the Justice Department said it anticipated engaging with both sides to understand their positions, suggesting it is keen for an out-of-court settlement.
“The more important thing for me is that MBS is holding Saad’s kids, essentially extorting Saad,” Daniel Hoffman, a former director of the CIA’s Middle East division, told AFP.
“That is very much against the humanitarian values of the US.” – AFP, July 11, 2021
