Saudi Arabia Rejects Turkey's Call to Extradite Khashoggi's Killers

MANAMA: Riyadh on Saturday rejected Ankara's appeals to extradite 18 Saudis arrested for the murder of critic Jamal Khashoggi, while Washington warned that the crisis could destabilize the Middle East.

"These individuals are Saudi nationals who are being held in Saudi Arabia.The investigation is taking place in Saudi Arabia and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia," said the Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir, at a regional defense forum in Bahrain.

He responded to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who reiterated his call on Friday for the 18 men to be extradited for trial in Turkey.

Saudi journalist Khashoggi, 59, who had been living in voluntary exile in the United States since 2017, was murdered after entering the Istanbul consulate on October 2 to obtain documents marrying his Turkish bride.

According to horrific reports, he was allegedly killed and dismembered by a Saudi Arabian team charged with silencing the Washington Post columnist, who had criticized the powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

After weeks of denials, Riyadh sought to draw a line of demarcation in the face of the crisis with an investigation.

Prince Mohammed, heir to the throne of this oil-rich nation, publicly denounced the killing as "repulsive", while the Saudi prosecutor admitted for the first time this week that the killing had been "premeditated" on the evidence base of a Turkish investigation. ".

But US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, who also spoke at the Manama forum, warned that "the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in a diplomatic establishment must concern us all greatly."

"Failure by a country to meet international standards and the rule of law undermines regional stability at a time when it is absolutely necessary," he said.

The journalist's murder provoked outrage from the international community and undermined relations between Riyadh and the United States and other Western governments.

French and German leaders said Saturday that they wanted a "coordinated" European stance on sanctions on arms sales to Saudi Arabia.

This happened after French President Emmanuel Macron hinted on Friday that the government of German Chancellor Angela Merkel was engaging in "sheer demagogy" by ending arms sales in Riyadh.

On the sidelines of a Syrian summit in Istanbul, the two leaders conducted a "peaceful exchange," said the palace of the Elysee, and agreed not to announce their upcoming positions on the question without prior coordination "at European level".

The Saudi Foreign Minister promised on Saturday that the kingdom would "overcome" the crisis caused by the killing of Khashoggi.

"As I said, the problem is currently being investigated, we will know the truth, we will hold those responsible accountable, and we will put in place mechanisms so that it does not happen again, "Jubeir told the defense forum. .

Beyond the detention of the 18 suspects, five Saudi intelligence chiefs were fired, including two who were part of the Crown Prince's restricted circle.

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.

Turkish pro-government media reported that intelligence agents had shown Haspel video footage and audiotapes of Khashoggi's murder at the consulate.

But the body of Khashoggi, who was once an insider in Saudi royal circles, has still not been found.

"You have to show this body," insisted Erdogan on Friday, indicating that his country had more evidence of the murder to be disclosed.

The Turkish president, who has not accused the Saudi government of blaming directly, added that the 18 suspects should know who killed Khashoggi and reiterated his call for men to be tried in Turkey.

"The culprit is among them, if that is not the case, who is the local conspirator?" You must say so, "he said.

"If you do not say it, Saudi Arabia will not be safe from this suspicion."

Khashoggi's fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, said in an interview on television Friday that she would never have let him enter the consulate if she had thought that "the Saudi authorities would prepare a conspiracy" to kill him.

"I demand that all those involved in this savagery from the highest to the lowest levels be punished and brought to justice," Cengiz told Haberturk television.

She stated that she had not been contacted by Saudi officials and that it was unlikely that she would go to Saudi Arabia to attend a funeral if the body missing is found in Khashoggi.