U.S. President Donald Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump hailed as a "great first step" Friday Saudi Arabia's explanation for the fate of a missing Saudi journalist. Congress, however, was less enthusiastic.
Trump told reporters he thinks Saudi Arabia's explanation that Jamal Khashoggi died after a brawl inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul is credible, adding he does not think he has been lied to during conversations with Saudi Arabia's senior leaders.
"I think we're getting close to solving a very big problem," Trump said.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was behind the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a former chief of British intelligence agency MI6 said Friday.Speaking to the BBC, Sir John Sawers said the theory that rogue elements in the Saudi military were responsible was “blatant fiction”.Sawers’ comments follow remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump that Khashoggi was presumed dead and the consequences for Saudi Arabia would be “severe” if Saudi leaders were found to have ordered his alleged murder.“I think President Trump and his ministerial team are waking up to just how dangerous it is to have people acting with a sense that they have impunity in their relationship with the United States,” Sawers said.“If it is proven, and it looks very likely to be the case, that [Prince Mohammed] ordered the killing of the journalist, it is a step too far; one that the UK, the EU and the U.S. are going to have to respond to.”Sawers underlined that the “rogue elements” theory of the journalist’s death “simply doesn’t hold water” and that it “further undermines respect for America when it panders to such blatant fiction”.“The level of detail that is coming out from Turkish security sources is so clear that some form of tape must exist,” he said, praising Turkish intelligence services’ work on the case.“The level of detail is very damning of the hit squad, and [their reported identities] show how close they are to the crown prince.”Meanwhile, British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said there would be “consequences” that would affect British-Saudi ties if Khashoggi was murdered in a brutal way in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.Hunt said the suspected killing of Khashoggi is “completely unacceptable” for the UK.However, he also signaled that Britain’s response would be “considered” towards an ally in the battle against terrorism and with which it has multi-billion pound arms contracts. “Let’s be absolutely clear: if the stories that we read about are true, and if you are asking me whether that will have consequences for the relationship with Saudi Arabia, then, yes, of course it will because what is alleged to have happened is totally inconsistent with our values...not just the brutality of it, if it happened, but also the fact that he was a journalist,” Hunt said, speaking to the BBC. “Part of our reaction will depend on the Saudi reaction, and whether we sense that they are taking it as seriously as we are taking it. But this is a very, very serious matter.”Hunt said the UK’s “relationship with the Saudis is a strategic relationship as well”.“Our response will be considered... (but) in the end, if these stories are true, we have to be absolutely clear; it would not be consistent with our values,” he added.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.The investigation into Khashoggi’s disappearance continues.
Saudi prince behind Khashoggi murder: Ex-MI6 chief
Saudi Arabia, the president said, "has been a great ally in the Middle East. We need them as a counterbalance to Iran, and so it's not the simplest solution. It's not the simplest situation to be in".
Preliminary investigations by the Saudi Public Prosecution Office into Khashoggi’s disappearance said he had gotten into a “quarrel and brawl” with people he met while in the consulate which led to his death, the state-run Saudi Press Agency said in a statement.
Eighteen Saudi citizens have been arrested over links to Khashoggi’s death, according to the news agency.
The U.S. on Friday expressed "sadness" over the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside Riyadh's consulate in Istanbul. Khashoggi died after a brawl inside the consulate and 18 Saudi citizens have been arrested over the murder, said the Kingdom.White House Spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement that the U.S. acknowledged Saudi Arabia’s announcement and was "closely" following the developments."We will continue to closely follow the international investigations into this tragic incident and advocate for justice that is timely, transparent, and in accordance with all due process," Sanders said. "We are saddened to hear confirmation of Mr. Khashoggi’s death, and we offer our deepest condolences to his family, fiancée, and friends."Lost Saudi journo had urged Arab youth to fight tyrannyAs Khashoggi crisis grows, Saudi king asserts authority, checks son's powerKhashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post, had gone missing since entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.On the day of his 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.Saudi consulate employees in Istanbul give testimony at prosecutor's officeTurkish probe locates exact site of Khashoggi killing: Al Jazeera
US 'saddened' over confirmed death of Saudi journalist
Those having such links will be held accountable and brought to justice, it added.
While Trump offered measured optimism about Riyadh's explanation, Capitol Hill was far less satisfied.
"To say that I am skeptical of the new Saudi narrative about Mr. Khashoggi is an understatement," Republican Senator Lindsay Graham said in a statement posted to Twitter. "It’s hard to find this latest 'explanation' as credible."
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said late Friday he is "deeply troubled" by the confirmed death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.His remarks came after Saudi Arabia admitted Khashoggi was killed after a brawl inside its consulate in Istanbul. Khashoggi had been missing since early October after entering the diplomatic building."The Secretary-General is deeply troubled by the confirmation of the death of Jamal Khashoggi," said Stephane Dujarric, Guterres’s spokesman. "He extends his condolences to Mr. Khashoggi’s family and friends."As Khashoggi crisis grows, Saudi king asserts authority, checks son's powerGuterres "stresses the need for a prompt, thorough and transparent investigation into the circumstances of Mr. Khashoggi’s death and full accountability for those responsible," said the statement.Preliminary investigations carried out by the Public Prosecution Office revealed that Khashoggi had "a quarrel and brawl with the persons he met" at the consulate, which "resulted in his death", the state-run Saudi Press Agency said in a statement.The agency reported that 18 Saudi citizens have been arrested over links to Khashoggi’s death and those having such links will be held accountable and brought to justice.Saudi consulate employees in Istanbul give testimony at prosecutor's officeTurkish probe locates exact site of Khashoggi killing: Al Jazeera
UN chief ‘deeply troubled’ by Khashoggi’s death
Graham has been one of the fiercest critics of Saudi Arabia on the Hill amid Khashoggi's disappearance and has warned he would pursue sanctions against the Kingdom while calling for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman -- who reports allege is responsible for a plot to kill Khashoggi -- to step down.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal echoed Graham, saying on the microblogging site that Riyadh's "actions explanations continue to defy credibility common sense".
"No way should the world wait 30 days for a Saudi whitewash or cover up. U.S. must call for an international investigation that holds accountable all responsible—not just Crown Prince's fall guys."
In the House, Representative Ro Khanna -- a long-time opponent of U.S. military support to Riyadh's bombing campaign in Yemen -- said Washington's $110 billion arms sale to Riyadh "should be cancelled immediately".
"Our foreign policy needs to be oriented toward human rights, not making huge profits for defense contractors," he said.
Trump has continued to balk at suggestions that the U.S. halt arms sales to Riyadh, saying earlier Friday that doing so "would be very hurtful to this country" and adding after the Saudi explanation was made public he "would prefer we don't use as retribution cancelling $110 billion worth of work".
"The last thing I want to say is 'we're not gonna supply you with that,'" Trump said. "I'd rather find another solution."
Should Congress seek to end arms sales over the president's objections, Trump could veto the move if it passes, but he would risk an override by a two-thirds majority of lawmakers in each chamber -- a scenario more likely if Democrats take either chamber in November's midterm elections. Republicans currently control the Senate and the House.
Also reacting to Riyadh's announcement, outgoing Republican Senator Bob Corker said Saudi Arabia's explanation for what happened to Khashoggi "continues to change with each passing day, so we should not assume their latest story holds water".
"They can undergo their own investigation, but the U.S. administration must make its own independent, credible determination of responsibility for Khashoggi’s murder under the Global Magnitsky investigation as required by law," he added in a separate tweet.
He was referring to an investigation he triggered earlier this month along with three other senators into Khashoggi's disappearance under a U.S. law intended to hold human rights abusers to account.
In a letter to Trump, the minority and majority leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the leaders of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee responsible for the State Department called on Trump to determine whether imposing sanctions "with respect to any foreign person responsible for such a violation related to Mr. Khashoggi" is warranted.