How valuable is the truth? How far would you be willing to go to protect it; expose it; tell it? The murder of Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Instanbul back in 2018 sent a shiver into journalistic and activist communities around the world. Khashoggi was a Washington Post columnist; a TV panelist; a keynote speaker. He was vociferous in his distaste for the Saudi regime and, specifically, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. And, because of this, he was lured into a trap and brutally butchered.
His death – like many elements of the Saudi regime itself – was shrouded in mystery and cover ups. The quest for truth was, once again, something that seemed dangerous, with massive geopolitical repercussions.
Bryan Fogel’s documentary appears, at times, to be straight out of a spy thriller movie. There is phone hacking, false arrests, speedy getaways and a seemingly omniscient threat. The fact that it is the reality for so many who are trying to expose exactly what is happening within the Arabian peninsula makes it all the more terrifying.
There was a time – long before clickbait and social media became a thing – where journalists were seen as beacons of truth, exposing everything from political scandals to serial killers. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, they report what they are told to report. But Khashoggi believed in journalism. He believed in the power of facts. He believed in using truth and knowledge to implement real, meaningful change. And he would die for those beliefs.
The documentary neatly weaves between Khashoggi’s story, that of his widow (the Turkish writer Hatice Cengiz) and the story of another ‘dissident’, Omar Abdulaziz. Abdulaziz is now living in Canada, frightened to return to his homeland where his brothers and friends have been imprisoned and tortured. He continues to tweet about injustices and – having struck up a friendship with Khashoggi – state sanctioned murder.
The film contrasts Abdulaziz living in the shadows, looking over his shoulder, with the hyperbolic grandeur or the Saudi regime. Every conference, every event, is swathed in gold and marble – a not so subtle hint as to the resources these one-men mouthpieces are coming up against. Hatice Cengiz bravely continues to campaign for justice for her dead fiancé and you can’t also help but wonder how much danger she faces in doing so.
Fogel uses the documentary to highlight the reach of the Saudis – from state sponsored cyber trolling to seemingly cordial relationships with the West and Russia. As the credits sequence points out, not one single Western regime imposed any sort of repercussions on the House of Saud in the aftermath of Khashoggi’s death.
There are two particular moments that stand out. The first is the explanation of the Pegasus software – a virus that infiltrates your mobile phone and turns your camera, audio, messages and pictures into a walking bug. Even Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos fell victim to it, owing to a WhatsApp message sent from the Crown Prince.
The second is the transcript of the murder itself. Turkish President Erdogan – outraged that such an act had been committed in his capital city – released these tapes and scripts to the world with devastating effect. Even the hardened, experienced experts – who have presumably seen or heard worse in the course of their careers – can barely get through these segments without a tremble in their voice or a tear in their eye. Fogel really ups the tension here as he reveals how Khashoggi was dismembered with a bonesaw and how the smell of cooking 70lbs’ worth of tandoor meat was used to disguise the disposal of his corpse.
It is both brutal and shocking in its exposition.
The aim of the documentary is to alert people to the ongoing human rights abuses in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and to highlight the importance of truth. However, with the global reach and seemingly endless resources – not to mention friends in high places – you can’t help but wonder if it will scare even more into silence.
The Dissident is now streaming on Amazon Prime.
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