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The Washington Post called "shocking in its audacity" Saudi Arabia’s new narrative Thursday on the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Previously, the Kingdom said Khashoggi was killed in a "premeditated" operation and later acknowledged he was killed after he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul by a hit team sent to return him to Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi chief prosecutor's office said 11 suspects had been indicted and the death penalty was being sought for five of them.
The office distanced Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman from the murder as well as his two aides alleged to have ordered the operation.
In a statement, Saudi Deputy Public Prosecutor Shalaan al-Shalaan said an operation was ordered either to persuade or force Khashoggi to return to Saudi Arabia.
Ahmed al-Assiri, a former deputy head of intelligence, issued an order for Khashoggi’s return Sept. 29, a day after the journalist's first visit to the consulate building.
It was al-Assiri who formed a 15-member team, according to the prosecutor. He contacted a forensics expert to join it for the purpose of removing evidence from the scene in the event force had to be used.
Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said on Thursday the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in its Istanbul consulate is now a legal case and should not be politicised, after the public prosecutor said it would seek the death penalty for five suspects."The politicisation of the issue contributes to a fissure in the Islamic world while the kingdom seeks the unity of the Islamic world," Adel al-Jubeir told reporters in Riyadh."We consider Khashoggi’s murder a crime and very big mistake," he said.Erdoğan adviser says Saudi Arabia trying to cover up Khashoggi murderJubeir added that there were still unanswered questions in need of answers, but Ankara had refused three requests from Riyadh to provide proof of their accounts of the killing.Jubeir said Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had "absolutely nothing to do" with the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, after the public prosecutor said he would seek the death penalty for five suspects.Asked about possible international sanctions in response to the case, Adel al-Jubeir told reporters there was a difference between sanctioning individuals and holding the Saudi government responsible.Turkey not satisfied by Saudi prosecutor comments on Khashoggi: FM
Khashoggi murder a very big mistake: Saudi FM
"After surveilling the consulate, the head of the team concluded that it would not be possible to transfer the victim by force ... so the head of the team decided on murder," said the prosecutor.
"By offering up this incredible account, the Saudi regime is baldly defying all those, including leading members of [the U.S.] Congress, who called for full disclosure and accountability," wrote the Post's editorial board.
Washington imposed sanctions on 17 individuals in connection with the murder, but the board said neither the crown prince nor Riyadh's top intelligence officials were among them.
The Post said the new Saudi account revealed the operation was ordered by then-deputy chief of intelligence Ahmed al-Assiri and advised by Saud al-Qahtani, a court propagandist, who it said is close to bin Salman.
An adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Thursday that comments from Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor were aimed at covering up the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, adding the Saudi probe was unlikely to find the perpetrators.Yasin Aktay, who advises Erdoğan in his AK Party, made the comments after Saudi's public prosecutor said the journalist was killed after "negotiations" to convince him to return to the kingdom failed. Turkish officials have said they believe the killing was premeditated."They expect us to believe the killers carried this out on their own. This isn't very credible. Everything is clear as day, but there is an effort to cover it up a bit," Aktay said.Erdoğan has said the killing was ordered at the "highest levels" of the Saudi government.Turkey not satisfied by Saudi prosecutor comments on Khashoggi: FMEarlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also slammed the comments from Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor."I don't find some comments satisfying. They say this person was killed because he resisted, whereas this murder was premeditated," Çavuşoğlu said."Where is the body of the murdered Khashoggi? Where was it thrown, where was it burned?" he added. "Again, they say he was dismembered... but this isn't a spontaneous thing. The necessary equipment and people were previously brought in to kill and later dismember him."Çavuşoğlu also reiterated Turkey's call for Riyadh to disclose the location of Khashoggi's remains."Where is the body of the murdered Khashoggi? Where was it thrown, where was it burned?" Çavuşoğlu said. He did not say whether Turkey had evidence that pointed to the body having been burned. Turkey has previously called for an investigation into reports the body was dissolved in acid.Khashoggi’s body dismembered inside Istanbul consulate: Saudi prosecutorIsrael’s Gaza war part of bin Salman plot to distract world from Khashoggi killingPrince Salman’s right hand men the royal family fears
Erdoğan adviser says Saudi Arabia trying to cover up Khashoggi murder
Riyad did not say the two aides were complicit in the decision to kill Khashoggi and were fooled by their team’s claim that the journalist left the consulate alive.
"That doesn’t explain a portion of the audio recording reported by the New York Times, in which Maher Mutreb, a close associate of the crown prince, instructs an official by phone to 'tell your boss' that the mission was accomplished," it wrote.
U.S. intelligence officials believe the “boss” is "almost certainly Prince Mohammed."
The newspaper also urged Congress not to allow "this travesty" to continue.
"It should suspend all military sales and cooperation with Saudi Arabia until a credible international investigation of the Khashoggi killing is completed," it said.
The cover story, it added, is just one "more instance of Mohammed bin Salman’s arrogant and reckless behavior.
"The true murderers of Jamal Khashoggi must be named and punished," said the board.
The body of slain Saudi Journalist was dismembered inside his country’s Istanbul Consulate General, according to Riyadh’s top prosecutor.In a statement made on Thursday, the prosecutor said he’s seeking the death penalty for five suspects in the Khashoggi murder case.The prosecutor told reporters in Riyadh that investigations were still ongoing to locate the remains of the body.The prosecutor’s office also said it was awaiting Turkey's response to its request for evidence and sound recordings of the crime.The prosecutor also said it was awaiting Turkey's response to its request for evidence and sound recordings of the crime.World wondering who ordered Khashoggi killing, says AK Party spoxWhereabouts of Khashoggi still unknownSaudi Arabia's public prosecutor said on Thursday the person who had ordered the killing of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi was the head of the negotiating team sent to repatriate him and that the whereabouts of Khashoggi's body remained unknown.The prosecutor told reporters in Riyadh that investigations were still ongoing to locate the remains of the body.Ex-adviser Qahtani under investigationHe added that a former adviser to the royal court, Saud al-Qahtani, had been due to meet the team that was ordered to repatriate Khashoggi, who was killed after efforts to negotiate his return failed.Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb said Qahtani had been banned from travelling and remained under investigation, adding that the case has been transferred to court while investigations continue.Israel’s Gaza war part of bin Salman plot to distract world from Khashoggi killingSaudi Arabia charges 11 in relation to Khashoggi murderSaudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor’s office on Thursday announced it had charged 11 out of 21 suspects in relation to the murder early last month of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.At a press conference held in capital Riyadh, the chief prosecutor announced his intention to call for the death penalty against anyone found guilty of ordering and carrying out the journalist’s murder.The prosecutor’s office also said it was awaiting Turkey's response to its request for evidence and sound recordings of the crime.Prince Salman’s right hand men the royal family fearsKhashoggi, a frequent contributor to The Washington Post, was killed on Oct. 2 inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.After weeks of denying involvement, the kingdom admitted Khashoggi had been killed inside the consulate but claimed the Saudi royal family had no prior knowledge of any plot to murder the journalist.
Khashoggi’s body dismembered inside Istanbul consulate: Saudi prosecutor