France Releases Saudi Mistakenly Arrested in Connection With Jamal Khashoggi Murder

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French officials released a Saudi man on Wednesday that they had arrested the day before in connection with the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The Paris General Prosecutor’s office released a statement saying that the man “was released” after “extensive checks on the identity of this person showed that the warrant did not apply to him.” The Saudi embassy confirmed the statement and added that the arrested person “has nothing to do with the case in question.”

The arrest had been made based on warrants issued by Turkey through Interpol.

Khashoggi was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey three years ago. The story sparked international outrage and ongoing pleas for justice in the case.

U.S. intelligence agencies reported in February that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the killing of Khashoggi, who had been a prominent critic of the Saudi regime.

The arrest in France was praised as a potential breakthrough in the years-long struggle to see Khashoggi’s killers brought to justice. The Saudis have claimed that the killing was a rogue operation, repeatedly denied any government involvement, and said they have already found and tried and punished those involved.

The head of Amnesty International, Agnès Callamard, tweeted on Tuesday that this might be a “major breakthrough in the question for justice.”