France imposes sanctions on 18 Saudis over Khashoggi killing

France said on Thursday it had imposed sanctions, including travel bans, on 18 Saudi citizens linked to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and warned that more could follow depending on results of the current investigation.

The bans bind all members of the European Union's passport-free Schengen zone, it said.

"The murder of Mr. Khashoggi is a crime of extreme gravity, which moreover goes against freedom of the press and the most fundamental rights," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"France asks that all light be shed on the manner in which such an act may have been committed. It expects from the Saudi authorities a transparent, detailed and exhaustive response," the statement added.

French reaction has been relatively guarded given it is keen to retain its influence with Riyadh and protect commercial relations spanning energy, finance and weapons sales.

Khashoggi was killed and dismembered on Oct. 2 in the Saudi consulate in Turkey's Istanbul. The 59-year-old was a veteran Saudi journalist who wrote for the Washington Post and other international media. He had become one of the leading public critics of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whose father is the Saudi king.

Last week, the Saudi state prosecutor's office announced that 21 individuals had been taken into custody and charges set against 11 of them. Five of them face possible execution for the murder, according to the prosecutor.

France said in its statement that it opposed the death penalty in all circumstances.

Turkey reiterated Tuesday that it would not allow a cover-up of the investigation on Khashoggi's killing, shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump said that Washington would not deter its ties with Riyadh in a statement that attempted to eliminate the Saudi crown prince's role in the incident as the ultimate person giving the order for the murder.

"The truth has to come out on who gave the instructions regarding his killing," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told reporters in Washington following a meeting with his U.S. counterpart Mike Pompeo, adding that Ankara was not satisfied with the level of cooperation it has received so far from Riyadh as part of the investigation into what has been described as a "premeditated" and a "political" murder by many.

Çavuşoğlu reiterated that Turkey would take formal steps to seek a United Nations-led international inquiry into the incident if Ankara reaches an "impasse" with Riyadh.

Turkey to seek UN investigation into Khashoggi murder if Saudis don't cooperate

Turkey is not entirely satisfied with the level of cooperation it is receiving from Saudi Arabia over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and could seek a formal United Nations inquiry over the issue if its liaising with Riyadh comes to an impasse, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said late Tuesday during a press conference in Washington D.C.

Speaking to reporters after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Çavuşoğlu said Turkey has shared the latest information on the Khashoggi killing with the United States and repeated Ankara's stance that the truth had to come out on who gave the orders to kill the journalist.

"We do not see Khashoggi's murder as a bilateral matter between Turkey and Saudi Arabia; it is a humanitarian issue," the top diplomat said.

"The truth has to come out on who gave the instructions regarding his killing," he added.

After offering numerous contradictory explanations for Khashoggi's disappearance, Riyadh said last week Khashoggi had been killed and his body dismembered when "negotiations" to convince him to return to Saudi Arabia failed. The public prosecutor said it would seek the death penalty for five suspects in the case.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said the killing was ordered at the "highest levels" of the Saudi government but has not directly accused Prince Mohammed. Saudi Arabia has denied that the prince ordered Khashoggi's killing.

U.S. intelligence officials have concluded that Crown Prince M. bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's de facto leader, ordered the Oct. 2 killing of Khashoggi, according to a U.S. official familiar with the assessment. Others familiar with the case caution that while it's likely that the crown prince had a role in the death there continue to be questions about the degree to which he was involved.

Turkey has also handed to the United States a list of 84 individuals that it wants extradited, Çavuşoğlu said, over their links with Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) leader Fetullah Gulen, blamed by Ankara for orchestrating a 2016 coup attempt.

He added that Ankara had passed on the list following a telephone conversation between Erdoğan and Trump.

Snowden accuses Israeli cybersecurity firm of enabling Khashoggi murder

US whistleblower Edward Snowden accused an Israeli cybersecurity firm of developing and selling surveillance software to Saudi Arabia, enabling the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, at a conference in Tel Aviv on Wednesday.

Snowden, who was speaking at the conference via video-link from an undisclosed location in Russia, claimed that Israeli company NSO Group had sold Saudi Arabia software that was used to bug the phone of one of Khashoggi’s friends.

He said that the role the firm and their software played in Khashoggi’s murder is “one of the major stories that’s not being written about.”

“They are the worst of the worst in selling these burglary tools that are being actively, currently used to violate the human rights of dissidents, opposition figures, activists, to some pretty bad players,” Snowden told his audience.

Saudi Arabia Bans Muslims From Israel and Palestine from Hajj in Mecca

Saudi Arabia has decided to prevent the Hajj more than a million Israeli Muslims. Earlier, the people of Israel could make a pilgrimage with a temporary Jordanian passport. But, according to the new rules of Saudi Arabia, the aforementioned passport is no longer valid.

Thus, more than a million Israeli Muslims will no longer be able to enter the Kingdom, and thus deprived of the opportunity of the pilgrimage to Mecca that is one of the five pillars of Islam. This became known after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu supported the crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Prince Mohammad bin Salman al Saud and discussed the importance of maintaining regime stability.

Note that the pilgrimage to Mecca performed during the month of Ramadan. The lesser pilgrimage “Umrah” can be made at any time of the year and is not mandatory.

Israeli Muslims hitherto used a loophole in the 1978 law that allowed first to get a temporary passport in Jordan, and then travel with him to Saudi Arabia. But now the Kingdom has changed the rules. To travel on temporary documents will be prohibited during the December pilgrimage. Anyone wishing to make the pilgrimage will have to issue regular passports. This decision block on the border of Israeli Muslims, whose number amounts to 17% of Israel’s population.

Official representatives of Israeli Muslims stated that the law worked for 40 years. For some reason, it was decided to cancel it, is unknown. So, the pilgrimage, which was held in December, where already thousands of Israeli pilgrims to pass will not.

While neither the Jordanian nor the Israeli side has not received official explanations from Saudi Arabia.

Saudi's handling of Khashoggi case 'worst cover-up ever' - Trump

US. President Donald Trump on Tuesday called Saudi efforts to hide Jamal Khashoggi's murder "worst cover-up ever", and said he will leave the consequences for Saudi Arabia up to Congress in consultation with him.

"They had a very bad original concept. It was carried out poorly, and the cover up was one of the worst in the history of coverups," Trump told reporters at the White House.

"Whoever thought of that idea is in big trouble, should be in big trouble," Trump said. He noted that Saudi Arabia is in a "nasty part of the world" but that was not an excuse.

When asked about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's remarks about the killing of Saudi journalist Khashoggi, Trump said his comments were "pretty rough" but he criticized Riyadh's handling of the matter.

Trump said he wanted to get all the facts on Khashoggi's death at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul before agreeing with Erdoğan's assessment. Trump, who sent his CIA director to Turkey to discuss the issue, said he expected to have a report pretty soon

Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. He was never seen exiting the diplomatic facility.

Saudi Arabia has claimed Khashoggi, a writer for The Washington Post who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, died accidentally in a brawl at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul that day.

But Turkish officials say a 15-men team tortured, killed and dismembered the writer and say Saudi officials had planned the killing for days.

Source: dailysabah

Germany will halt Saudi arms sales until Khashoggi case cleared up: Merkel

The killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate is a “monstrosity,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel has stated, adding that Berlin will not sell arms to Riyadh while the issue remains unclear.

Her comment reiterates a statement made on Sunday, in which she said there is an “urgent need for clarification of exactly what happened” to Khashoggi and condemned his killing “in the strongest terms.”

Her comment about Germany refusing to sell arms to Riyadh while the issue remains unclear is significant, as the country approved weapons exports to Saudi Arabia worth €416.4 million this year, reportedly making Riyadh Germany’s second-best arms customer after Algeria

Earlier on Monday, Germany urged other EU states to follow its example of ending arms exports to Saudi Arabia so long as uncertainty remains over what exactly happened to Khashoggi.

Source: RT

Turkey will ‘reveal’ full truth behind Khashoggi’s death on Tuesday: Erdogan

Turkey will reveal the full truth surrounding the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, according to AFP.

The announcement comes just two days after Erdogan spoke with Saudi King Salman, where both agreed to continue cooperation with the investigation into the journalist’s death.

On Saturday, Omer Celik, a spokesman for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), also stated that Ankara would “reveal whatever had happened” to Khashoggi, saying that “nobody should ever doubt about it.”

Turkey previously stated that the journalist was killed by a Saudi assassination squad, while Saudi Arabia has said he died in a “fistfight” inside the consulate.

Khashoggi, a Washington Post journalist who was critical of the Saudi royal family, was last seen on October 2 when he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Source: RT

Breaking: Saudi Arabia admits death of Khashoggi

The initial Saudi investigation into the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi has found that he is dead, Saudi-based Al-Ekhrabiya reported.

According to the report, the Saudi investigators are probing at least 18 suspects; they are all Saudi nationals.

Furthermore, King Salman has dismissed the Deputy Intelligence Chief General Ahmed Al-Assir, along with Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman’s closest aide Saud Al-Qahtani.

Khashoggi was reportedly killed after a fight broke out inside the Saudi Consulate; his body is still missing.

The Saudi government is still investigating the case in coordination with the Turkish state, the report added.

Breaking: ‘It certainly looks like’ Khashoggi is dead, consequences will be severe – Trump

The missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi appears to be dead, US President Donald Trump has told reporters, saying there would be “severe” consequences for whoever is behind it.

“It certainly looks that way to me,” Trump said when asked if Khashoggi was dead. “It’s very sad.

Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey two weeks ago. Turkey has accused Saudi Arabia of sending a hit squad to abduct and assassinate the journalist, who wrote a column for the Washington Post. Riyadh has denied responsibility.

Potential consequences for Saudi Arabia “will have to be very severe,” Trump told reporters on Thursday, before departing for Montana. “I mean it’s bad, bad stuff, but we’ll see what happens.”

Source: RT

Turkish official tells CNN that Jamal Khashoggi’s body was cut up after he was killed

An unnamed Turkish official told a CNN correspondent on Tuesday that journalist Jamal Khashoggi was cut up after he was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

The CNN claim comes just hours after Turkish police announced that they have found evidence of foul play inside the Saudi Consulate.

As of now, both Turkey and Saudi Arabia are investigating Khashoggi’s disappearance inside the Saudi Consulate in an effort to solve the case.

Prior to his disappearance, Khashoggi was a well-known Arab journalist and columnist for the Washington Post.

Trump vows to punish Saudi Arabia for Khashoggi murder

S. President Donald Trump has said Saudi Arabia could be behind the disappearance of missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi and warned Washington would inflict "severe punishment" if he was murdered.

The Saudi critic has not been seen since he walked into the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul on October 2, with Turkish officials accusing Riyadh of murdering him inside the diplomatic mission.

"We're going to get to the bottom of it and there will be severe punishment," Trump told CBS's "60 Minutes" program, according to an extract of an interview that was released on Saturday.

"As of this moment, they deny it and they deny it vehemently. Could it be them? Yes," Trump said in the interview, which was conducted on Thursday, when asked if Khashoggi was murdered by Saudi Arabia.

But when asked what options Trump would consider, the president said he was not keen to limit arms sales to the kingdom -- a position he has previously voiced.

"Well, it depends on what the sanction is," he said.

"I'll give you an example -- they are ordering military equipment. Everybody in the world wanted that order. Russia wanted it, China wanted it, we wanted it. We got it, and we got all of it, every bit of it.

He added: "I'll tell you what I don't want to do. Boeing, Lockheed, Raytheon, I don't want to hurt jobs. I don't want to lose an order like that. And you know what, there are other ways of punishing, to use a word that's a pretty harsh word, but it's true."

Turkish-Saudi Team To Investigate Khashoggi Disappearance

A joint Turkish-Saudi team will investigate the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi upon the Saudi Arabia request, Presidential Advisor Ibrahim Kalın said on Thursday.

Kalın told Anadolu Agency: “Within the framework of a close cooperation between Turkey and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and upon the suggestion of the Kingdom, a joint working team between Turkey and Saudi Arabia will be formed to investigate the case of Khashoggi in all its aspects.”

Khashoggi, journalist and columnist for The Washington Post, has been missing since he entered the consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Turkish authorities suspect he was killed. Saudi Arabia denies any involvement in his disappearance.

On Tuesday, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said Saudi authorities notified Ankara that they were “open to cooperation” and would allow the consulate building to be searched.

Turkish police investigating the case said in a statement Saturday that 15 Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and entered the consulate while Khashoggi was inside. On Tuesday, footage and identities of the “assassination” squad were made public.

Khashoggi had been living in self-imposed exile in the U.S. since last year.