Though Trump an exception, Saudi account of Khashoggi killing is widely denounced
ISTANBUL — Turkey will “never allow a cover-up” of the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul, a senior official in Turkey’s ruling party said Saturday, reflecting international skepticism over the Saudi account that the writer died during a “fistfight.”
The comment was one of many critical reactions to Saudi Arabia’s announcement early Saturday of the writer’s violent death, indicating the kingdom’s efforts to defuse a scandal that has gripped the world were falling short. President Donald Trump, however, was an exception. Asked whether he thought the Saudi explanation was credible, he replied: “I do. I do.”
Despite widespread outrage over the killing of the columnist for The Washington Post, it is unclear to what extent the top leadership of Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. ally and a powerful player in a volatile region, would be held accountable for what human rights activists describe as an extrajudicial killing by Saudi agents.
The only way to find out what happened would be through an international investigation led by a U.N.-appointed panel, the editorial board of The Washington Post said.
Saudi Arabia’s “latest version asks us to believe that Mr. Khashoggi died after becoming engaged in a ‘brawl’ with officials who had been sent to meet him. His body, Saudi officials told several journalists, was handed over to a ‘local collaborator’ for disposal,” it said, while also criticizing Trump for allegedly trying to help top Saudi leaders escape “meaningful accountability.”
Saudi Arabia said 18 Saudi suspects were in custody and intelligence officials had been fired. But critics believe the complex scheme that led to Khashoggi’s death could not have occurred without the knowledge of Mohammed bin Salman, the 33-year-old crown prince.
The Saudi narrative of Khashoggi’s death — that he was killed in a brawl following discussions with visiting officials in the consulate — contrasts with Turkish progovernment media reports that a Saudi hit squad, including an autopsy expert, traveled to Istanbul to kill Khashoggi and dispose of his body, which has not yet been found.
The overnight statement, released by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, that the writer died in the consulate also came more than two weeks after Khashoggi, 59, entered the building for paperwork required to marry his Turkish fiancée and never came out. Saudi Arabia initially denied any knowledge of his disappearance.