Following the murder of Robert F Kennedy in 1968, US agencies kept a watchful eye on Middle East sentiment about his assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, the Palestinian Christian who emigrated from Jordan to the US, recently declassified documents show.
“Saudi press has followed Sirhan case almost daily with straight news coverage,” reads a telegram from the State Department concerning the man convicted of killing Mr Kennedy during his run for the Democratic presidential nomination.
“First editorial comment since verdict and sentencing appeared today … urging Arabs not to feel sad for Sirhan since grief is only for those who lose way … editorialist also argues Sirhan is 'lighting the way and defining the goal', and he concludes that dying is 'simplist duty' for the cause of freedom.”
The author of the State Department memo goes on to claim the editorial written in a Saudi newspaper is an “effort to make the best out of a bad situation”, adding that many in the kingdom had mixed feelings about Sirhan.
“They realised it was misguided and harmful to the overall Arab cause, yet like other Arabs have sought to convince themselves that Sirhan is a hero,” the memo read.
Investigations by Los Angeles police and FBI indicated speeches given by Mr Kennedy on the campaign trail in support of Israel fuelled Sirhan's motivation to assassinate him on June 6, 1968, after the senator won the California Democratic presidential primary.
“RFK must die,” Sirhan wrote repeatedly in a diary found by investigators. Friends and acquaintances said at the time that Sirhan had become obsessed with Mr Kennedy due to his stance on Israel.
Sirhan was convicted of first-degree murder.
Also included in the thousands of documents that lingered in storage for decades is a memo from the US embassy in Beirut that included a letter about Sirhan signed by the Palestinian Women's Association.
“The defendant, Sirhan Bishara Sirhan, was born in Palestine and his family was a victim of the Israeli usurper of this Arab country as a result of which immigrated to America,” the letter read.
“Robert F Kennedy and Sirhan Sirhan are both victims of intertwined factors. We hope, friend, that you would realise this fact and draw the attention of your great people to it.”
The author of the memo from the US embassy concludes that the writer of the letter hopes that Sirhan's murder of Mr Kennedy “will not prejudice the reaching of an understanding” between US citizens and Palestinians.
Another telegram from the State Department concerning support for Sirhan in Jordan laments the favourable press coverage he continued to receive, noting the “good possibility that it will succeed and convincing many Jordanians that Sirhan is in fact a hero”.
The telegram also points out the rising concern in Jordanian media that Sirhan might receive the death penalty, and that one editorial went as far as to suggest Jordanian officials convince North Vietnam's communist army to return US prisoners of war to America in exchange for guarantees that Sirhan wouldn't be executed.
Despite a preponderance of evidence, conspiracy theories have thrived for decades, with some suggesting Sirhan's innocence.
Mel Ayton, one of the foremost experts on Sirhan and Mr Kennedy's assassination, told The National the newly released documents disprove those theories, but said they would likely continue to exist.
“There's this image they keep pushing of Sirhan as a non-political patsy – that's what all the conspiracy-minded people try to say and it's completely asinine,” he said.
Sirhan's many attempts at parole have been unsuccessful. It was briefly granted by the California parole board in 2021, only for the decision to be vetoed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, who said the assassination was one of the most notorious crimes in US history.
For the 17th time since being incarcerated in 1969, Sirhan was denied a parole request in 2023. He will be eligible again in 2027.
The 81-year-old prisoner has periodically made contradictory comments about his role in Mr Kennedy's assassination. During some interviews, he claims not to remember the events, while during others he seems to express remorse for what he did.
This is the second round of documents related to the 1968 assassination of Mr Kennedy released by US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Ms Gabbard's push to make the documents public stems from US President Donald Trump signing an executive order in January directing agencies to release previously withheld files connected to the assassination of Mr Kennedy, as well as those of his brother, former president John F Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.
“More than 60,000 documents were discovered, declassified, and digitised for public viewing,” the DNI director posted to the social platform X on Wednesday.
Current US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr is the son of Robert F Kennedy.
