Riyadh (AFP) - A Saudi court on Monday overturned five death sentences over journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder, in a final ruling that was condemned by his fiancee and slammed by a UN expert as a "parody of justice".

The Riyadh Criminal Court announced prison sentences for eight defendants in the slaying of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported Monday, in a trial criticised by international human rights groups.

No senior official or anyone suspected of ordering the killing was found guilty.

The trial has been criticized as no senior official or anyone suspected of ordering the killing was found guilty.

Saudi Arabia has convicted eight people over the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, after his family announced pardons that spared five from execution. The Washington Post columnist was drugged and dismembered inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate in 2018.

A group of men convicted of killing Saudi government critic Jamal Khashoggi won't get the death penalty after Saudi authorities issued final sentences ranging from seven to 20 years in prison.