Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Saturday the suspects in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi will be tried in Saudi Arabia, not Turkey.
Oct. 27 (UPI) — Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Saturday the suspects in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi will be tried in Saudi Arabia, not Turkey.
He made the comments during a security summit in Bahrain also attended by U. S. Defense Secretary James Mattis.
Al-Jubeir refused Turkey’s request Friday that 18 suspects be extradited. On Oct. 20, Saudi Arabia confirmed Khashoggi died Oct. 2 after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, to obtain documents for his planned marriage. The government said he died after getting into a fight, but audio recordings indicated he was tortured and dismembered.
Khashoggi was a Saudi national who moved to the United States in 2017 and became a columnist for The Washington Post. He wrote columns critical of the Saudi government, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Riyadh portrays the incident as a rogue operation.
« The individuals are Saudi nationals, they are detained in Saudi Arabia, the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, » al-Jubeir said. « They will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia. »
The United States froze visas for all 18 who were arrested, plus three additional Saudis who belong to the intelligence service, royal court and a government ministry, the U. S. State Department said.
Also speaking at the conference, Mattis said Khashoggi’s death undermined Middle East stability.
« With our collective interests in peace and unwavering respect for human rights in mind, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in a diplomatic facility must concern us all greatly, » he said. « Failure of any one nation to adhere to international norms and the rule of law undermines regional stability at a time when it is needed most. »
