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The Attorney General of Istanbul has prepared a written request for the extradition of the 18 suspects.
FLAG. Turkish soldiers stand near a Turkish flag in Istanbul on May 1, 2017. Photo of Gurkan Ozturk / AFP file
ISTANBUL, Turkey – Turkey announced Friday, Oct. 26, that it wanted to extradite 18 Saudis after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara had more evidence.
The announcement came one day after the Saudi prosecutor said that, according to the evidence provided by Turkey, the murder appeared to have been premeditated – the first time the Saudi authorities had made such an admission.
In a speech in Ankara, Erdogan said the Saudi attorney general would travel to Istanbul on Sunday (October 28th) to meet with the Turkish authorities as part of the investigation.
The Saudi authorities had previously arrested 18 men wanted by Ankara following an international outcry over the death of Khashoggi, contributor to the Washington Post and critic of Saudi politics, killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2nd.
The assassination has tarnished the image of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has positioned himself as a Saudi reformer, and has tested relations between Washington and Riyadh as Western powers demand answers about the death of Khashoggi.
A written request to extradite the 18 suspects had been prepared by the Chief Prosecutor of Istanbul.
"It is clear that the Turkish judicial system is better equipped to truly serve the cause of justice in this case," said a senior Turkish official.
Erdogan on Friday called on Riyadh to reveal who ordered the killing and where Khashoggi's body was.
"You have to show this body," said Erdogan.
The Turkish president, who did not directly criticize the Saudi government, said the 18 suspects should know who killed Khashoggi and reiterated his call for these men to be tried in Turkey.
"The culprit is among them, if that is not the case, then who is the local conspirator?" You must say so, "he said.
"Unless otherwise stated, Saudi Arabia will not be safe from this suspicion."
The bride demands justice
Khashoggi, 59, who had been living in voluntary exile in the United States since 2017, was no longer seen after entering the consulate to obtain documents for his marriage to his Turkish girlfriend, Hatice Cengiz.
Cengiz, in tears, said Friday during a television interview that she would never let Khashoggi enter the consulate if she had thought that "the Saudi authorities would prepare a plot" 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 TV.
She added that she had not been contacted by Saudi officials and that it was unlikely that she would go to Saudi Arabia for a possible burial if the missing body is found in Khashoggi.
Saudi Arabia tried to draw a line from the crisis in the investigation, but a series of horrific details about the murder continued to appear in the Turkish media.
In his speech, Erdogan said more evidence needed to be revealed.
"It's not that we do not have any other information or documents.We have them tomorrow is another day," he said.
Saudi explanations "childish"
Riyadh's confession that the killing appeared to be a premeditated murder marked the latest rebound in the changing narrative of the Saudi authorities.
They had first insisted that Khashoggi had left the consulate unscathed, then claimed that he had been killed in an argument that had degenerated into a fight.
In his speech, Erdogan mocked the first story of Khashoggi's disappearance as "childish" and "far from the seriousness of the state".
And explanations have met with growing disbelief from Western governments who say many questions remain.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel promised on Friday that Berlin would not export arms to Saudi Arabia until the assassination would not have been clarified, said French President Emmanuel Macron, described as "pure demagoguery" because "it has nothing to do with Mr. Khashoggi".
Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl, in an interview granted Friday to a German newspaper, supported the call for an EU embargo on arms shipments to Saudi Arabia .
"Above all, it is the terrible wars in Yemen and Qatar that should lead us to act in a united way as the European Union vis-à-vis Saudi Arabia," Kneissl told Die Welt. .
At the same time, the Kremlin declared that Russia believed that Saudi royals were not involved in the murder.
US President Donald Trump has called this case "one of the worst hiding in history".
Pro-government Turkish media said intelligence officers showed Haspel video footage and audiotapes of Khashoggi's murder at the consulate.
A Turkish presidential source said Erdogan had shared information about the case with Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, during a phone call on Friday.
Prince Mohammed, de facto ruler of the kingdom, denounced the murder "repugnant", denying any involvement. Kingdom leaders have pushed responsibility into the chain of command.
Agnès Callamard, an expert with the UN, said Thursday (October 25th) that Khashoggi had been the victim of an "extrajudicial execution" by the Saudi state. She called for an international inquiry. – Rappler.com
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