Saudi Interior Minister Wins Libel Suit Against U.K. Daily

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Prince Nayef Bin Abdul-Aziz al-Saud, Saudi Arabia's Interior Minister and second in line to the country's throne, has been awarded significant undisclosed damages by England's High Court in his libel suit against The Independent, according to an online article by BBC News.

Both the daily's publisher, Independent Print Ltd. and Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk, who wrote the Independent article published April 15, 2011, underlying the defamation claim, apologized in the proceedings presided over by Mrs Justice Nicola Davies. The plaintiff said he will donate the judgment amount to charity.

The Independent article accused al-Saud of ordering police to use deadly force on unarmed protestors. The Prince's counsel said the alleged written order was a fake and contained features that authentic orders from the Ministry of the Interior would not.

Bahrain Sues U.K. Daily for Defamation

Image via WikipediaBahrain has sued  The Independent for allegedly "orchestrating a defamatory and premeditated media campaign" against the Persian Gulf kingdom, according to an article on the British daily's Website (www.independent.co.uk).

The government-controlled Bahrain News Agency reported that Bahrain and Saudi Arabia had been targets of  "unrealistic and provocative articles," and pointed a finger at Independent Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk. The constitutional monarchy has retained counsel in the U.K., but The Independent is not waving a white flag, because, as in the U.S., case law in the U.K. has well-established that local and national governments can't sue for defamation.

Were an individual Bahranian official to sue, he or she would have to prove his or her reputation was tarnished by the media defendant, who in turn, could rely on a defense that it was serving the public interest by publishing the purportedly defamatory statements.