Turkey demands the extradition of 18 Saudis in the Khashoggi case

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish prosecutors have prepared a request for the extradition of 18 suspects from Saudi Arabia in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, authorities said Friday after President Tayyip Erdogan asked Riyadh to reveal the identity of the author of the murder.

Erdogan has stepped up pressure on Saudi Arabia in recent days to settle the case, and Western governments have also expressed increasing skepticism, placing the world's leading oil exporter and central ally. of the Middle East in an increasingly serious crisis.

Erdogan said Turkey had more information than the number of people shared so far about the killing of Khashoggi, a Saudi national and Washington Post editorialist, killed at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on October 2nd.

Khashoggi, who lived in the United States, was a critic of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of the kingdom.

The Saudi prosecutor said Thursday that the killing of Khashoggi was premeditated, which contradicts an earlier official statement that it would have occurred accidentally during a showdown at the consulate. The many changing narratives of this murder in Riyadh have undermined Prince Mohammed's position in the West.

Turkish prosecutors seeking extradition accuse the eighteen people of "murder committed with premeditation, monstrous intent or torture". Riyadh has already arrested the 18th as part of its investigation into the case. These include a security team of 15 people who, according to Turkey, flew a few hours before the murder and executed it.

"Who gave this order?" Said Erdogan in a speech to members of his AKP party in Ankara. "Who ordered 15 people to come to Turkey?", He said.

The Saudi authorities initially denied having anything to do with Khashoggi's disappearance after entering the consulate, where he had gone to obtain documents for a planned marriage.

"The reason for the request for extradition is that Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in Turkey by Saudi nationals who went to Turkey for this purpose," said a senior Turkish official.

"It is clear that the Turkish judiciary is better equipped to truly serve the cause of justice in this case."

Saudi Arabia also fired five senior government officials as part of the investigation.

FIANCEE SPURNED TRUMP INVITE

Khashoggi's Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, said she had not accepted the invitation of US President Donald Trump, the Kingdom's most fervent Western champion, to visit the White House after Khashoggi's murder, estimating that this was intended to influence public opinion in his favor.

In his first television interview since the murder, Cengiz recounted the events that preceded their visit to the consulate on October 2, during which Khashoggi handed him his two cell phones and went inside, waiting for him to talk. she goes out to the outside.

"Trump invited me to the United States, but I viewed it as a statement aimed at gaining the public's favor," Cengiz told broadcaster Haberturk, pausing on the occasion when from an interview and more than once burst into tears.

Trump and Prince Mohammed enjoyed warm relations, although the US president said earlier this week that the crown prince, as the de facto ruler of the kingdom, was the main cause of the operation against Khashoggi. Trump also said that Riyadh had organized the "worst concealment ever suffered" after the murder.

Cengiz said Khashoggi feared tension during his first visit to the consulate on September 28, but he was treated well during the visit, which seems to have reassured him, she said.

"He thought that Turkey was a safe country and that if he was detained or interrogated, the problem would be solved quickly," she said.

SELF-STYLE REFORMER

The way Western allies deal with Riyadh will depend on the extent to which they believe that Khashoggi's death is the direct responsibility of Prince Mohammed and the Saudi authorities.

Prince Mohammed, who calls himself a reformer, said the killers would be brought to justice.

Erdogan said he spoke with Prince Mohammed. "I also told the Crown Prince. I said, "You know how to make people talk. Whatever happened between these 18 people, this crazy affair is one of them. If you are determined to remove suspicions, the essential point of our cooperation concerns these 18 people. "

Turkish officials suspect Saudi agents of killing Khashoggi, 59, inside the consulate and dismembering him. According to Turkish sources, the authorities would have an audio recording documenting the murder.

CIA Director Gina Haspel heard the sound during a visit to Turkey this week, sources told Reuters. She also informed Trump about the results of Turkey's visit and its discussions.

The Saudi public prosecutor quoted by Saudi television said Thursday that Riyadh was interrogating suspects based on information provided by a joint Saudi-Turkish working group.

Many Saudis were shocked by the admission of Riyadh after two weeks of denial and condemnation of foreign news.

On Friday, authorities attempted to stem the aftermath of the country, ordering mosque preachers to focus their sermons on "the fierce and unjust attack on the country," according to a directive from the government. Reuters agency does not specifically mention the killing of Khashoggi.

A Riyadh cleric warned the faithful against repetition of information on television or on social media "without considering the danger of this information," adding that "most of them are lies".