Erdogan Accuses Saudi Crown Prince of Ordering Khashoggi’s Murder
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
For a month after Jamal Khashoggi entered the Saudi’s Istanbul consulate, never to be seen or heard from again, Turkish President Erdogan refrained from accusing kingdom crown prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) of ordering his murder to silence him.
In a November 2 neocon/CIA-connected Washington Post op-ed, that changed, Erdogan pointedly saying:
“(W)e know the order to kill Khashoggi came from the highest levels of the Saudi government” – meaning MBS, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, authority delegated to him by his father, king Salman, Erdogan adding:
“We also know that (MBS directed a 15-member Saudi hit squad) to carry out (his) orders: Kill Khashoggi (in Istanbul) and leave.”
“(W)e must reveal the identities of the puppet masters behind Khashoggi’s killing” – meaning MBS and his top aides, not king Salman, having largely abdicated authority to his favorite son, the crown prince.
The Saudi hit squad team arrived in Istanbul and left less than 24 hours later, carrying out their order to kill Khashoggi and dispose of his body.
It’s unclear whether it was buried in Turkey at an unknown location, returned to the kingdom, or dissolved in acid as one report claimed.
Multiple reports said he was strangled to death straightaway after entering the consulate, his body dismembered for disposal.
After weeks of dissembling, wrapped in changing narratives, Riyadh finally admitted the killing, calling what happened “premeditated” – while going all-out to shield MBS from responsibility.
Erdogan accused high-level Saudi officials of “coverup,” adding “(s)ome…hope this ‘problem’ will go away in time. But we will keep asking those questions, which are crucial to the criminal investigation in Turkey…”
A month after Khashoggi’s abduction and murder, important questions remain unanswered, including the location of his remains and names of all Saudi officials involved in eliminating him.
“…Saudi authorities have refused to answer (these and other important) questions,” stonewalling to conceal vital information, said Erdogan, saying:
He shared Turkish evidence of the killing “with our friends and allies, including the United States.”
“The murder of Jamal Khashoggi involves a lot more than a group of security officials” dispatched to Istanbul to eliminate him.
In a same day WaPo editorial, the broadsheet pointedly said the following:
“The most important question in the case of Jamal Khashoggi is whether Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, will be held accountable for what his regime acknowledges was a premeditated act of murder,” adding:
“Much of the available evidence points to the prince. We cannot find a Middle East expert who believes the official story that the 15-member assassination team sent to Istanbul, including five probable members of the prince’s security detail, was a rogue operation.”
“Yet the regime is engaged in a determined stonewalling operation to protect the 33-year-old crown prince, who stands to inherit the throne from his father and become the absolute ruler of one of the world’s largest oil producers, potentially for decades.”
“He has the support of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi — another dictator who has killed peaceful opponents — and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu” – allied with the US in brutalizing Palestinians.
“According to Post reporting, Mr. Sissi and Mr. Netanyahu have lobbied the White House not to punish Mohammed bin Salman.”
At a Friday memorial service for Khashoggi in Washington’s Mayflower hotel, his fiancee Hatice Cengiz said “I really don’t know how to express myself. Nothing has relieved me of the pain from the atrocity I experienced.”
“The most important reason for this is because his corpse has still not been found…(O)ur pain is still as fresh as the first day.”
Separately in a WaPo commentary, she said: “Today is also United Nations International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. The coincidence is tragic and painful.”
“It is now up to the international community to bring the perpetrators to justice…But the Trump administration has taken a position that is devoid of moral foundation.”
“Those who ordered this murder — even if they stand in the highest political office — should also be prosecuted.”
Most often, justice delayed is denied, what’s likely ahead this time – the Trump regime stalling to maintain normal relations with the kingdom.
The policy of most other countries is no different. Khashoggi’s murder won’t change dirty business as usual with the kingdom – never before, not now or ahead.
My newest book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”
