U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo listened to an alleged audio recording of the "murder" of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, ABC News reported Thursday, citing a senior Turkish official.
Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post newspaper, has long been feared killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul after he entered on Oct. 2 and was never seen exiting.
According to ABC News, the Turkish official said Pompeo listened to the recording Wednesday during a meeting in Ankara, adding he was also given a transcript of the recording.
The Saudi Scholars Association released a statement on Thursday calling for the removal of Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud from his position as the crown prince of Saudi Arabia.In a statement shared on their official Twitter account, the Saudi Scholars Association dubbed the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi as “cruel.”Turkey says Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who was critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed by Saudi agents in Riyadh's diplomatic mission in Istanbul on Oct. 2 and his body dismembered. Saudi Arabia denies the allegation.ندعوا أهل الحل والعقد إلى وجوب عزل ولي العهد الأمير محمد بن سلمان فقد بان فسقه واتضح أنه ليس بالعدل ولا من أهل الكفاءة .#المجالس الإسلامية#هيئة_علماء_السعودية #جمال_خاشقجي@alqaradawy @aliqaradaghi pic.twitter.com/A792S2P80Z— هيئة علماء السعودية (@SaudiOlamaa) 18 Ekim 2018 “Our country is now dragged into a dangerous dead-end due to the current crises. Prince Salman, who is responsible for these incidents, has arrested many important figures, and sentenced them to prison,” the statement said.There has been a wave of arrests of academics, writers, and religious figures in the Kingdom since September 2017.The statement went on to say that Salman had wasted public property and that corruption had increased as a result of his poor administration.The Saudi Scholars Association stated that a new crown prince should be appointed, and that those arrested should be freed immediately.US intel ties Saudi Prince to journo’s disappearanceFrance sends mixed signals over Saudi ties after Khashoggi affairUS-Saudi relations in light of Khashoggi case
Saudi Scholars Association calls for Crown Prince Salman to be dethroned
ABC News also reported that "Turkish officials believe that Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate following a struggle that lasted eight minutes and they believe he died of strangulation".
The State Department denied the report.
"Secretary Pompeo has neither heard a tape nor has he seen a transcript related to Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance," spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.
Prior to his visit to Ankara, Pompeo traveled to Saudi Arabia, where he held talks with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Khashoggi’s disappearance.
The investigation of a journalist who went missing after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul "complies with international law and conventions in all aspects," prosecutors said in a statement Thursday.The public will be informed about the investigation "when necessary," said the Istanbul's Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi is feared killed since he entered the Saudi Consulate on Oct. 2 and was never seen leaving.The prosecutor's office said after the Levent Police Station was told by Khashoggi's Turkish citizen fiancee Hatice Cengiz on Oct. 2, 4.40 p.m. local time (1340GMT) about the disappearance, the investigation "began immediately."Istanbul forest being searched for Khashoggi bodyThe office also said after Saudi officials granted permission on Tuesday, "procedural acts started at the Saudi Consulate, Saudi consul's residence, and vehicles."On the same day of the disappearance, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the consulate while Khashoggi was still inside, according to Turkish police sources. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.On Wednesday, crime scene investigation units arrived at the official residence of the Saudi consul, Mohammad al-Otaibi, around 4.40 p.m. local time (1340 GMT). Al-Otaibi had left Turkey for Riyadh on Tuesday.France sends mixed signals over Saudi ties after Khashoggi affairOfficials from a joint Turkish-Saudi team completed an investigation into the case early Thursday after searching the residence as well as the Saudi Consulate building in Istanbul.The Turkish team concluded its search for evidence in nine hours and left but returned to the Saudi Consulate to continue searching the premises.US-Saudi relations in light of Khashoggi caseTurkey says results 'expected soon' on Khashoggi case
Khashoggi probe 'complies with international law'
Addressing reporters at the White House after his return to the U.S., Pompeo said he advised President Donald Trump to give Saudi Arabia "a few more days" to complete their investigation into the matter.
On the same 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.
Search teams started poring through Belgrad Forest, located in Turkey’s Istanbul, on Thursday looking for the body of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.It is believed that vehicles that left the consulate on Oct. 2, the day Khashoggi went missing, could have traveled to the forest.Khashoggi was a U.S. resident who wrote columns for the Washington Post and he was critical of the Saudi government, calling for reforms.France sends mixed signals over Saudi ties after Khashoggi affairHe has long been feared killed after he entered the Saudi Consulate building in Istanbul on Oct. 2 and was never seen leaving.On the same day, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the consulate while Khashoggi was still inside, according to Turkish police sources. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.Recordings reveal Khashoggi tortured then dismembered while still aliveOfficials from a joint Turkish-Saudi team completed an investigation into the case early Thursday after searching the Saudi consul general's official residence as well as the Saudi consulate building in Istanbul.The Turkish team concluded its search for evidence in nine hours and left but returned to the Saudi consulate to continue searching the premises.German opposition demands end to Saudi arms salesUS-Saudi relations in light of Khashoggi caseDutch pull out of Saudi conference over missing journalistTurkey says results 'expected soon' on Khashoggi case
Istanbul forest being searched for Khashoggi body
On Wednesday, crime scene investigation units arrived at the official residence of Saudi Consul General Mohammad al-Otaibi around 4.40 p.m. local time (1340GMT). Al-Otaibi had left Turkey for Riyadh on Tuesday.
Officials from a joint Turkish-Saudi team completed an investigation into the case early Thursday after searching the residence as well as the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Middle Eastern news headlines have dramatically shifted over the past couple of weeks from the usual fare of Syria, Iraq and Palestine to diplomatic intrigue and stories of assassins murdering journalists. Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi, is feared dead after he was seen entering the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, but never left. What followed was a flurry of accusations, denials and shuttle diplomacy to extinguish the fires left in the wake of Khashoggi’s disappearance and alleged murder.- Who is Khashoggi?What is perhaps most incredible to me is the sheer outpour of rage directed at the Saudi state for Khashoggi’s disappearance. The outrage is unsurprising, given news stories have suggested that the Saudi columnist was brutally interrogated by a 15-man hit squad sent by Riyadh before being tortured to death [1] over a period of around seven minutes. According to reports, Khashoggi’s body was subsequently dismembered before being made to disappear.This has led to calls for the protection of journalists from state-backed assassins. The main problem here is that Jamal Khashoggi was not a conventional journalist.Turkey says results 'expected soon' on Khashoggi case Khashoggi has had a deep and well-documented connection with the Saudi state since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan [2], where he worked with the Kingdom’s intelligence service as Riyadh and Washington both supported the jihad against the USSR. He worked as a journalist and travelled throughout Afghanistan, the Middle East and North Africa, likely reporting what he learnt to intelligence handlers.His relationship with high-ranking Saudi royals is also no secret, as he was an advisor to Prince Turki Al Faisal, who was Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States as well as the head of the Kingdom’s intelligence service for 24 years between 1977 and 2001. Far from being a dissident opposed to the Saudi state at a fundamental level, it is important to note that Khashoggi was very much supportive of many of his country’s policies despite his progressive and reformist bent, and had only taken a stand against Riyadh recently, following Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman’s (MBS) rise to power.One of 15 Saudis that targeted Khashoggi dies in suspicious car accident- US-Saudi relations likely to remain stableAlthough Khashoggi was not a U.S. citizen, he was a permanent resident there and worked for one of the most high-profile newspapers in the country. Therefore, his disappearance has raised hackles and not just eyebrows in Saudi Arabia’s closest ally and backer.Indeed, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened “severe punishment” [3] if it turned out that Saudi Arabia had ordered a hit on the columnist. While Trump would not be drawn on exactly what he meant by punishment, he did say that he would not stop selling arms to Saudi, a country that is currently involved in a military intervention in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthi Shia militants.Trump also took the crisis as a callous opportunity to essentially squeeze Riyadh for more money, making a speech days after Khashoggi’s disappearance saying that, although he liked King Salman bin Abdulaziz, the Saudi monarch “wouldn’t last two weeks” [4] without US support. As such, Trump said it was only fair that Riyadh paid more for American protection, and as soon as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo landed in the Saudi capital, $100 million was delivered to Washington’s coffers [5].Trump: US requested audio, video on missing journalistThe U.S. administration will continue to protect the Saudi monarchy quite simply because Riyadh’s wealth is so vast. Although Senator Lindsey Graham, normally a staunch supporter of Saudi Arabia, has taken the unusual step of calling on MBS to be ousted by his family as he is a “wrecking ball” [6], Trump has defended the Saudi government, saying that they would be considered innocent until proven guilty [7].Arguably, Trump has a point. To date, there has been a media frenzy surrounding the Khashoggi case, and primarily because the antagonist in this story is Saudi Arabia. There is certainly no doubt about it being suspicious that Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate and never came out. However, no one yet knows what happened to the Saudi columnist, and most of the information comes from anonymous sources. It is important that authorities provide factual material to media agencies rather than what so far amounts to speculative tidbits that serve to enflame an already tense situation.The pressure caused by the media furore apparently has the Saudi authorities now considering admitting to Khashoggi’s death at the hands of “rogue” agents who may have accidentally killed the journalist in a rendition operation gone horribly wrong. Still, with Trump’s support and the friendship of his son-in-law Jared Kushner, it is likely that top Saudi royals will emerge unscathed while the operatives involved will face harsh punishment. The true tragedy, however, will be that we may never know truly what happened to Jamal Khashoggi, and we may never see his case brought to a just conclusion.By Tallha Abdulrazaq, a researcher at the University of Exeter's Strategy and Security Institute and winner of the 2015 Al Jazeera Young Researcher Award. His research focuses on Middle Eastern security and counter-terrorism issues.[1] https://www.middleeasteye.net/...[2] https://www.middleeasteye.net/...[4] https://edition.cnn.com/2018/1...[5] https://www.nytimes.com/2018/1...[6] https://www.cnbc.com/video/201...[7] https://www.nytimes.com/2018/1...
US-Saudi relations in light of Khashoggi case