Journalist’s killing rogue op: Saudi
‘COVER UP’ One Saudi official claims agents may have threatened to kidnap Khashoggi but killed him when he resisted
WASHINGTON/LONDON :Saudi Arabia has blamed the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on a “rogue operation”, giving a new account of the act that sparked a global outcry.
“This was an operation that was a rogue operation. This was an operation where individuals ended up exceeding the authorities and responsibilities they had,” foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir said on the US broadcaster Fox.
“They made the mistake when they killed Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate and they tried to cover up for it,” he said.
The comments from al-Jubeir were some of the most direct yet from Riyadh, which has given multiple and conflicting accounts about Khashoggi’s killing on October 2, first denying his death and later admitting it amid an international outcry.
US Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin said Saudi Arabia’s admission that the Washington Post columnist was killed in a fist fight was a “good first step but not enough,” though he added it was premature to discuss sanctions against Riyadh.
Three European powers — Germany, Britain and France — pressed Riyadh to provide facts, and Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany would not export arms to Saudi Arabia while uncertainty over Khashoggi’s fate persisted.
Late on Sunday, the Saudi Press Agency said both Saudi King Salman and Prince Mohammed had called Khashoggi’s son, Salah, to express their condolences. Jubeir had extended condolences to Khashoggi’s family earlier on Sunday. “Unfortunately, a huge and grave mistake was made and I
assure them that those responsible will be held accountable for this,” he told Fox.
Jubeir said the Saudis did not know how Khashoggi, a Saudi national and US resident, had been killed or where his body was, adding that Prince Mohammed was not responsible.
Khashoggi vanished after entering the consulate to obtain documents for his upcoming marriage.
After two weeks denying any involvement in the 59-year-old’s disappearance, Saudi Arabia on Saturday said Khashoggi, a critic of the crown prince, died during a fight in the building. An hour later, another Saudi official attributed the death to a chokehold. “Nothing can justify this
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They made the mistake when they killed Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate and they tried to cover up for it. ADEL AL-JUBEIR, Saudi Arabia foreign minister
killing and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” Germany, Britain and France said in their joint statement.
“There remains an urgent need for clarification of what happened... beyond the hypotheses that have been raised so far in the Saudi investigation.”
The White House said late on Sunday that US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron had discussed a range of issues including circumstances surrounding Khashoggi’s death.
Reflecting international scepticism over its account, a senior Saudi government official laid out a new version that contradicts previous explanations.
The latest account includes details on how 15 Saudis sent to confront Khashoggi had threatened him with being drugged and kidnapped and killed him in a chokehold when he resisted. A team member dressed in Khashoggi’s clothes to make it appear as if he left the consulate.
ERDOGAN TO SPEAK
Turkish officials suspect Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate by the Saudi agents and his body cut up. Turkish sources say authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting Khashoggi’s murder.
In a speech on Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared to suggest he was getting ready to release some information about the Turkish investigation, and would do so at his weekly speech on Tuesday to members of his ruling AK Party.
Turkey’s Anadolu agency said early on Monday that Erdogan and Trump had spoken on the telephone and agreed that “all aspects” of the case needed to be cleared up.