Saudi Arabia tried to find a more “PG” alternative explanation of the fate of a missing US journalist, officially saying that the journalist died at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago in an “interrogation gone wrong,” according to the New York Times. Since the release of this statement, more information has surfaced suggesting a possible premeditated murder.
Stepping aside briefly to give you some needed background, Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist, had moved to the US to write for The Washington Post. During that time, he had a strong relationship with the Saudi royal family, but Khashoggi began writing columns that criticized the policy decisions of the Saudi government. About two weeks ago, Khashoggi went to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, to file paperwork to marry his fiancée and, while she waited in the car, he never returned.
Reporters speculate that Khashoggi was murdered by a 15-person Saudi hit squad and dismembered while in the consulate. Last week, a Turkish newspaper close to the government published a list of the 15 men it says formed the group suspected of killing Khashoggi. According to CNN reports, the Saudi government is preparing a report that will “acknowledge that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s death was the result of an interrogation that went wrong, intended to lead to his abduction from Turkey. One source says the report will also conclude that the operation was carried out without any official clearance from the Saudi government.
After Turkish officials searched the consulate for nine hours on Monday night, they discovered that the body of Khashoggi had been cut into pieces, as well as evidence that an “autopsy specialist carrying a bone saw” was among the 15 Saudi operatives who were visited, and promptly left, Istanbul the day Khashoggi disappeared.
President Donald Trump has threatened that there will be “severe consequences” if the Saudis are found responsible for the death of Khashoggi but have also suggested that perhaps “rogue killers” are responsible for this murder. While President Trump has made his opinion on the matter clear, members of the US Senate, specifically the unfortunately named Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).
Sen. Graham appeared on the popular children’s television program, “Fox and Friends,” stared directly into the camera, and proclaimed 33-year-old Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman has “got to go.”
“Saudi Arabia, if you’re listening, there are a lot of good people you can choose, but MBS has tainted your country and tainted himself.”
-Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina)
Graham continued in his Oscar-winning monologue against the crown prince on Fox News Radio, saying “this is not rogue killers, this is a rogue crown prince. It’s game over for me with MBS.” Though I understand the gravity of the situation, it sounds like Sen. Graham is actually upset his “mega bowel syndrome.” I would be too, bud.
Sen. Graham’s frustrations, aside from his stomach issues, stem from his track record of supporting Saudi Arabia “on the floor of the United States Senate.” Graham fully blames Prince Salman for the murder of Khashoggi, exclaiming that the Saudi Crown Prince “is a wrecking ball,” continuing to assert that “he had this guy murdered in the consulate in Turkey. And expect me to ignore it. I feel used and abused… The MBS figure to me is toxic. He can never be a world leader on the world stage.”
The president has made it clear that, despite the alleged murder of Khashoggi under investigation, it is important that arms sales with the Saudis continue.
“I tell you what I don’t want to do. Boeing (BA), Lockheed (LMT), Raytheon(RTN), all these companies — I don’t want to hurt jobs. There are other ways of punishing” the Saudi government, CBS reports.
President Trump sent US Secretary of State Mike to meet with top Saudi Leaders as sources told CNN that the Saudi government prepares to acknowledge what actually took place.
Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggi’s fiancee who waited outside the consulate, tweeted a verse from the Quran on Tuesday promising “eternal hellfire” for the killers of “deliberate believers.” I can only imagine the pain she must be feeling, and know that whoever is responsible for this murder will face justice soon enough.
