New York Police Department says the sisters said they would rather commit suicide instead of returning to Saudi Arabia
Two sisters who were found dead in New York’s Hudson River had previously told acquaintances they would rather harm themselves than return to the Kingdom, police said Friday.
The bodies of Tala Farea, 16, and her sister Rotana, 23, were found on Oct. 23 floating near Riverside Park about 3.5 miles (5.6 kilometers) downriver from the George Washington Bridge, which connects Manhattan with the state of New Jersey.
The New York Police Department, which has been investigating the case, said the sisters told people in Virginia, the state where they lived, that they would rather commit suicide instead of returning to Saudi Arabia, according to multiple reports.
Their bodies were found bound together with tape, but police said there was no evidence of foul play, adding there is evidence that they were alive when they entered the Hudson River.
Prior to their deaths, the Farea sisters had stayed in luxurious hotels after traveling to New York from Virginia.
Police said a witness told them he spotted the sisters praying near the Hudson River before their bodies were recovered.
Officials did not explicitly identify a cause of death, and the investigation is ongoing.
Norway summoned the Saudi ambassador on Thursday over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the Norwegian Foreign Minister said on Friday."We have raised the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and presented our point of view to the Saudi ambassador several times after it was known," Ine Eriksen Soereide said in a statement."We underlined how seriously we take this issue again yesterday, when he was at the Foreign Ministry for a discussion." Pompeo says 'handful more weeks' before US responds to Khashoggi killingIsraeli official says Khashoggi death 'despicable', but Iran greater challenge'Khashoggi’s body was dismembered, dissolved in acid'Saudi prince disparaged Khashoggi in US calls: report
Norway summoned Saudi ambassador over Khashoggi murder
The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said it attacked Sanaa International Airport and an adjoining airbase being used by Houthi insurgents, as the two warring sides also clashed further west in the country’s main port city.The violence broke out days after renewed U.S. calls for a ceasefire in the three-and-half-year war that the Saudi-backed government suggested it was ready to support.Houthi forces were using the airbase in the capital to launch drone and ballistic missile attacks, a coalition spokesman told Saudi state al-Ekhbaria TV on Friday.Flights and international aid efforts were not affected, Colonel Turki al-Malki said.Al-Masirah TV, which is controlled by the Houthis, said more than 30 air strikes targeted al-Dulaimi Air Base in Sanaa and the surrounding areas.In the port of Hodeidah, fighting broke out early on Friday in a southern district, residents and military sources said.The coalition had massed thousands of troops near the city on Wednesday, in a move to pressure the Iran-aligned Houthis to return to U.N.-sponsored peace talks.The sources in Hodeidah said fighting was heard in areas near the airport and the university, and Apache helicopters were spotted in the sky.Forces loyal to the Saudi-backed government have said coalition strikes were intensified on Thursday night on Houthi bases near the eastern entrance to the port city, which is a gateway to the capital, and in its southern part.Saudi prince disparaged Khashoggi in US calls: reportGermany hardening line on Saudi Arabia and Khashoggi
Saudi coalition in Yemen attacks Sanaa sites, clashes in Hodeidah
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman described slain columnist Jamal Khashoggi as a dangerous Islamist in a call with top Donlald Trump administration officials, the Washington Post reported Thursday.The comments were made during a call with National Security Advisor John Bolton and the president's senior advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner before Riyadh acknowledged it killed Khashoggi, the newspaper reported.Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, sought to portray Khashoggi as a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, a transnational Islamist group originating in Egypt that has been the focus of criticism for some in the Trump administration, including Bolton.Germany hardening line on Saudi Arabia and KhashoggiA Saudi official denied the comments were made.But the reported comments, if true, stand in stark contrast to public statements made by the kingdom as it produced a shifting narrative over Khashoggi's disappearance before ultimately acknowledging he was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul amid international outcry.Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told Fox News that Khashoggi's death was a "terrible mistake" while simultaneously lamenting the "terrible tragedy."Arab media covers Turkey's Khashoggi statement"This was an operation where individuals ended up exceeding the authorities and responsibilities they had. They made the mistake when they killed Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate and they tried to cover up for it," he said.Reports had indicated the kingdom was planning to blame Khashoggi's death on rogue agents before it ultimately acknowledged he was killed in the consulate. Saudi Arabia has yet to explain its shifting narrative on Khashoggi's disappearance, nor has Riyadh produced his body after several reports said he was dismembered in the diplomatic facility.Saudi prince paying price for Khashoggi killingThe Istanbul Prosecutor's Office said Khashoggi was strangled to death "in a premeditated way" shortly after he entered the consulate to obtain documents for his pending nuptials, adding that his body was disposed of after being dismembered.Senior U.S. lawmakers, including Senator Lindsey Graham, have scoffed at suggestions anyone besides bin Salman could have signed off on the operation.US urges return of Khashoggi's remains to familyWorld media criticize Saudi Arabia's lack of cooperation
Saudi prince disparaged Khashoggi in US calls: report