Riyadh Saturday dismissed Ankara\u2019s calls to extradite 18 Saudis wanted for the murder of critic Jamal Khashoggi, as Washington warned the crisis risked destabilizing the Middle East.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe individuals are Saudi nationals. They\u2019re detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia,\u201d Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told a regional defense forum in Bahrain.<\/p>\n
He was responding to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who on Friday renewed his call for the 18 men to be extradited for trial in Turkey.<\/p>\n
Khashoggi, 59, who had lived in self-imposed exile in the United States since 2017, vanished after entering the consulate on October 2 to obtain paperwork for his marriage to his Turkish fiancee.<\/p>\n
Gruesome reports have alleged that he was murdered and his body dismembered by a team sent from Saudi Arabia to silence the Washington Post columnist, who had criticized Saudi\u2019s powerful Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.<\/p>\n
After weeks of denials, Riyadh has sought to draw a line under the crisis with an investigation.<\/p>\n
Prince Mohammad, heir to the oil-rich nation\u2019s throne, publicly denounced the murder as \u201crepulsive\u201d, while the Saudi prosecutor acknowledged for the first time this week that based on the evidence of a Turkish investigation the killing had been \u201cpremeditated\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u2018Undermining stability\u2019
\nBut US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who was also addressing the Manama forum, warned that \u201cthe murder of Jamal Khashoggi in a diplomatic facility must concern us all greatly\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cFailure of any nation to adhere to international norms and the rule of law undermines regional stability at a time when it is needed most,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>\n
Saudi authorities have arrested 18 men wanted by Ankara following the international furore over Khashoggi\u2019s murder, which was reportedly carried out in the consulate by a team which flew to Istanbul.<\/p>\n
Five intelligence chiefs have been sacked, including two who were part of the crown prince\u2019s inner circle.<\/p>\n
The journalist\u2019s murder has generated international outrage and undermined Riyadh\u2019s relations with the United States and other Western governments.<\/p>\n
But the Saudi foreign minister vowed Saturday \u201cwe will overcome it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe issue, as I said, is being investigated. We will know the truth. We will hold those responsible accountable. And we will put in place mechanisms to ensure it doesn\u2019t happen again,\u201d Jubeir told the defence forum.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, CIA Director Gina Haspel briefed US President Donald Trump on the latest developments in the investigation after a fact-finding mission to Turkey.<\/p>\n
Pro-government Turkish media said intelligence officers showed Haspel video images and audio tapes of Khashoggi\u2019s killing gathered from the consulate.<\/p>\n
\u2018Savagery\u2019
\nBut the body of Khashoggi, who was once an insider in Saudi royal circles, remains missing.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need to show this body,\u201d Erdogan insisted on Friday, indicating that his country had more evidence about the killing to reveal.<\/p>\n
The Turkish president, who has stopped short of directly blaming the Saudi government, added the 18 suspects must know who killed Khashoggi and repeated his call for the men to be tried in Turkey.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe culprit is among them. If that is not the case, then who is the local conspirator? You have to tell,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless you tell, Saudi Arabia will not be free from this suspicion.\u201d<\/p>\n
Khashoggi\u2019s fiancee Hatice Cengiz said in a TV interview on Friday that she never would have let him enter the consulate if she had thought that \u201cSaudi Arabia authorities would hatch a plot\u201d to kill him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI demand that all those involved in this savagery from the highest to the lowest levels are punished and brought to justice,\u201d Cengiz told the Haberturk television station.<\/p>\n
She said she had not been contacted by Saudi officials and was unlikely to go to Saudi Arabia for any funeral there if Khashoggi\u2019s missing body is found.<\/p>\n
Egypt Independent<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Riyadh Saturday dismissed Ankara\u2019s calls to extradite 18 Saudis wanted for the murder of critic Jamal Khashoggi, as Washington warned the crisis risked destabilizing the Middle East. \u201cThe individuals are Saudi nationals. They\u2019re detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia,\u201d Foreign Minister Adel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":112725,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7863],"tags":[43358,26112,8471,25395],"class_list":["post-112722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english-section","tag-khashoggi","tag-riyadh","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-turkey"],"yoast_head":"\n