Trump turns blind eye to murder, Turkey says

President’s remarks about Khashoggi killing are ‘comic,’ official says

A senior Turkish official accused U.S. President Donald Trump of being willing to overlook the murder of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi to preserve Washington’s relationship with Riyadh. He also called Trump’s remarks about the incident “comic.” Numan Kurtulmus, deputy chair of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s party, told state broadcaster TRT Haber that Trump’s “Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t” description of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s potential role in the Washington Post columnist’s slaying was a “comic statement.”

“It is not possible for an intelligence agency such as the CIA, which even knows the colour of the fur on the cat walking around the Saudi consulate’s garden … to not know who gave this order,” Kurtulmus said in remarks first reported by the Reuters news agency. “This is not credible either for U.S. public opinion or the world public opinion.”

In a statement published by the White House on Tuesday, Trump said the U.S. would remain a “steadfast partner” of Saudi Arabia and there was “nothing definitive” that connects Khashoggi’s killing inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to the crown prince.

Turkey has not produced evi- dence that directly links Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler to Khashoggi’s killing, but it claims the order to kill him came from the highest levels of Saudi Arabia’s government. Riyadh’s leadership has repeatedly denied involvement.

“Because it’s America first to me. It’s all about America first,” Trump said later Tuesday outside the White House after releasing his statement. “We’re not going to give up hundreds of billions of dollars in orders and let Russia, China and everybody else have them. It’s all about — for me, very simple, it’s America first,” he said.

Trump, whose statement on Khashoggi angered U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, on Wednesday praised Saudi Arabia for helping to lower oil prices.

“Oil prices getting lower. Great! Like a big Tax Cut for America and the World. Enjoy! $54, was just $82. Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let’s go lower!” he tweeted.

“I never thought I’d see the day a White House would moonlight as a public relations firm for the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia,” Sen. Bob Corker said in a tweet.

“Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. @SenBobCorker & I are triggering Magnitsky Act AGAIN to defend human rights & free press. Now Pres. Trump must SPECIFICALLY determine if Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman himself is responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi,” tweeted Sen. Robert Menendez.