European Parliament President Antonio Tajani
European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said Saturday that an international investigation is urgently needed to examine evidence and clarify circumstances surrounding the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
"Rigorous, international investigation urgently needed to examine evidence, clarify circumstances surrounding death of Jamal Khashoggi," Tajani said in a tweet.
Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and columnist for The Washington Post, had gone missing since entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.
Britain said on Saturday it was considering the "next steps" after Saudi Arabia acknowledged for the first time that the missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed at its consulate in Turkey."We send our condolences to Jamal Khashoggi's family after this confirmation of his death. We are considering the Saudi report and our next steps," the foreign ministry said in a statement. "As the Foreign Secretary has said, this was a terrible act and those responsible must be held to account."Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that he died after a fight broke out between Khashoggi and people who met him in the consulate after two weeks of denials that it had anything to do with his disappearance.Saudi consulate employees in Istanbul give testimony at prosecutor's officeUK academic calls for Saudi sanctions in Khashoggi case
Britain considering 'next steps' after Saudi Arabia admits journalist's death
Earlier Saturday, Saudi Arabia confirmed that Khashoggi died after a brawl inside the consulate.
On the day of Khashoggi’s disappearance, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the consulate while he was still inside, according to Turkish police sources. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.
A joint Turkish-Saudi team completed an investigation into the case on Thursday after searching the residence of the consul general as well as the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.
The United Arab Emirates on Saturday backed Saudi Arabia's statement about the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the official news agency WAM said.The Gulf Arab state "commends directives and decisions of Saudi King Salman on the issue of Kashoggi," WAM said on Twitter.Saudi Arabia has said that Khashoggi, a prominent journalist, died in a fight inside its Istanbul consulate - after two weeks of denials that it had anything to do with his disappearance - and dismissed five officials over the incident.Saudi senior scholars praise king's decisions on Khashoggi deathTrump a reluctant critic of Saudi Arabia despite pressure to actSaudi Arabia sacks top officials over Khashoggi deathSaudi Arabia says Khashoggi died at Istanbul consulate
UAE voices support for Saudi king statement on journalist's death
Saudi Arabia's highest religious body, the Council of Senior Scholars, on Saturday said the king's decisions on the death of Jamal Khashoggi "achieve justice and equality in accordance with Islamic law", according to a statement on state news agency SPA.Saudi Arabia has admitted that Khashoggi, a prominent journalist, died in a fight inside its Istanbul consulate - after two weeks of denials that it had anything to do with his disappearance - and dismissed five officials over the incident.Trump a reluctant critic of Saudi Arabia despite pressure to actSaudi prince behind Khashoggi murder: Ex-MI6 chiefUS 'saddened' over confirmed death of Saudi journalistUN chief ‘deeply troubled’ by Khashoggi’s deathSaudi Arabia sacks top officials over Khashoggi deathSaudi Arabia says Khashoggi died at Istanbul consulate
Saudi senior scholars praise king's decisions on Khashoggi death
Six days after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared, U.S. President Donald Trump tried to play down the crisis, saying "hopefully that will sort itself out".It did not, and on Oct. 10, amid a growing outcry, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and national security adviser John Bolton pressed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in what one U.S. official described as a "stern" phone call, to identify who was responsible for Khashoggi's disappearance or death.Trump then seemed to give Saudi Arabia the benefit of the doubt, suggesting "rogue killers" may have been to blame and criticizing a growing view that this was a case of state murder.He changed his tone once again late this week, raising the prospect of sanctions against Riyadh.Trump: Congress to be involved in Khashoggi responseBut when Saudi Arabia finally admitted on Saturday that Khashoggi was dead, saying he was killed in a fight inside the consulate, Trump said the official explanation was "credible" even as Republican and Democratic lawmakers responded with anger and disbelief.Over the last two weeks, Trump has at times spoken of punishing Saudi Arabia but appeared reluctant to follow through against a close economic and security ally in the Middle East, a key player in ensuring the stability of global oil markets, and a major customer of arms deals that he says are "tremendous"."Trump's dug himself into a hole," said Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East adviser to both Democratic and Republican administrations. "He will have to take some kind of action."Behind the scenes, though, Trump's aides scrambled to craft a response, especially as the bipartisan outcry in the Washington establishment grew.Saudi prince behind Khashoggi murder: Ex-MI6 chiefWhen news of Khashoggi's disappearance first broke, aides made clear to White House chief of staff John Kelly that the case was not going away, two senior White House officials said.Kushner, who had cultivated a close personal relationship with the crown prince, commonly known as MbS, urged Trump to act with caution to avoid upsetting a critical strategic and economic relationship, a senior administration official said.Kushner was heavily involved in making Saudi Arabia Trump's first stop on his maiden international trip as president last year.As grim allegations emerged from Turkey about Khashoggi’s death and the Saudis stuck to their denials, Trump felt pressure from congressional Democrats and some of his own Republicans.US 'saddened' over confirmed death of Saudi journalistU.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican close to Trump, accused MbS of ordering Khashoggi's murder and called him a "wrecking ball" jeopardizing relations with the United States.When Riyadh came out with its official version of what happened inside the consulate, Graham quickly tweeted he was "skeptical of the new Saudi narrative".'NOT A U.S. CITIZEN'Trump sought to justify his muted response by pointing out the incident occurred in Turkey and that Khashoggi, a U.S. resident and columnist for the Washington Post, was "not a United States citizen".Critics accused Trump of trying to give the Saudis diplomatic cover and buy time for them to get their story straight, something Trump's aides denied.UN chief ‘deeply troubled’ by Khashoggi’s deathAt the same time, Peter Navarro, Trump’s White House trade chief and architect of his “Buy American” policy to ease restrictions on foreign arms sales, was stressing the importance of Saudi weapons deals and the implications for U.S. jobs, another administration official told Reuters.Trump repeatedly touted the $110 billion in weapons deals he announced during his visit to Saudi Arabia last year, and insisted around 500,000 U.S. jobs were at stake. Experts have dismissed the sales and jobs numbers as highly exaggerated.Some Trump aides raised doubts about the veracity of the Turkish government’s leaks of what it says happened to Khashoggi.But as the days dragged on and evidence of Khashoggi’s death mounted, Trump's view began to shift, White House officials said.Saudi Arabia sacks top officials over Khashoggi deathHe ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to drop what he was doing and fly to Riyadh for talks at mid-week, and was then briefed by him at the White House on Thursday.Critics slammed Pompeo for appearing to hold court in a festive manner with MbS, undercutting the severity of the U.S. message.But one senior White House official countered, saying Pompeo told the Saudi royals that “you need to give us some legitimate information soon, people aren’t just going to let it drag on.'”Speaking to reporters during a trip to Arizona on Friday, Trump said he was ready to “listen to what Congress has to say” about actions to be taken in the Khashoggi case, yet also made clear he wanted to continue to protect defense contracts, and U.S. jobs dependent on them.Congress has already triggered a mechanism for the U.S. Treasury Department to consider human rights sanctions against Saudi Arabia and some lawmakers have vowed to block further arms sales to Riyadh, a move that Trump is likely to oppose.Saudi Arabia says Khashoggi died at Istanbul consulate
Trump a reluctant critic of Saudi Arabia despite pressure to act