How Saudi Arabia kept contradicting itself over the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi
SAUDI Arabia wants you to believe its account of a journalist’s abrupt disappearance. But too many little things don’t add up.
AFTER more than two weeks of international pressure, Saudi Arabia finally came clean.
In its most recent admission, the kingdom claimed journalist Jamal Khashoggi had died after he entered into a fight with Saudi officials who had been sent to meet him.
The past 17 days have seen the kingdom’s story rapidly changing, with Riyadh continually adjusting its account of events in accordance with growing evidence and global outrage.
Here’s a breakdown of the reasons their story doesn’t stack up:
ON KHASHOGGI’S DEATH
Saudi officials originally denied Khashoggi’s sudden disappearance on October 2 had anything to do with the consulate.
Shortly after his disappearance, the kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman claimed Khashoggi left the consulate after “a few minutes or one hour”.
He said Saudi Arabia had “nothing to hide”, and his story was reiterated by various Saudi officials over the following week, including his younger brother.
But over the weekend, the story had changed. In the wake of growing outrage and Turkish media reports claiming to have discovered gruesome audio of the journalist being murdered, Saudi Arabia finally admitted that Khashoggi was killed in their consulate in Istanbul.
In a statement — curiously released at 1am local time on a Saturday, not within the usual working hours for the Saudi Attorney-General — the kingdom expressed “deep regret” about “the painful developments” in the story, admitting Khashoggi had died in the consulate.
There are still contradictory accounts over what happened to his body; Turkish officials suspect it was cut up, but the Saudi official claimed it was rolled up in a rug and given to a “local cooperator” for disposal.
“The intention was not to kill him,” an anonymous Saudi official Reuters of the journalist’s death. He said Khashoggi died after he was placed in a chokehold.
This raises other questions — if Khashoggi’s death was in any way an accident, why were police and emergency personnel not called immediately? What happened to his body? Why did it disappear in the first place?
ON KHASHOGGI’S SUFFERING
A Saudi official suggested Khashoggi didn’t suffer. “(A chokehold) is how he died. It didn’t last that long,” he told the New York Times.
But Turkish investigators said the journalist suffered a brutal death, and was tortured, killed and dismembered by a hit team of Saudi agents.
According to Middle East Eye, Turkish sources said he took seven minutes to die.
Last week, Turkish authorities released an audio recording that appeared to show Khashoggi being murdered.
Turkish authorities also claimed Dr Salah Muhammed al-Tubaigy, the head of forensic at the Saudi General Security Department, cut off Khashoggi’s fingers and head.
Reports stated that a bone saw was found at the site, which raises more questions: what was such a weapon doing there, particularly if those involved just wanted to talk? Why was a group of 15 men needed to take down a lone 59-year-old reporter?
ON THE INVESTIGATION
In their weekend statement, Saudi officials said they sent a security team to Turkey to investigate almost immediately after they learnt of his disappearance.
“The Kingdom took the necessary procedures to clarify the truth and began by sending a security team to Turkey on 6 October 2018 to investigate and co-operate with counterparts in Turkey,” the statement reads.
But according to officials, Turkish investigators weren’t permitted to enter the consulate until October 15, almost two weeks after Khashoggi vanished.
By the time they arrived, Saudis had tampered with the scene, painting over some of what they needed to examine, Turkish President Recip Tayip Erdogan said.
ON CROWN PRINCE’S ROLE
It’s believed Khashoggi was murdered because he openly criticised the Crown Prince and his regime, but Saudi authorities insisted he played no part in his death.
In a Fox News interview yesterday, Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir insisted that the operation was not ordered by bin Salman, adding that “we don’t know where the body is”.
But a new bombshell report by pro-Government daily Yeni Safak claims the Crown Prince telephoned the Washington Post columnist moments before he was killed in the Saudi consulate.
While the claim has not been verified by officials in public, Turkish authorities have consistently leaked details of the investigation to pro-government media outlets and their reports have been largely accurate.
“Khashoggi was detained by the Saudi team inside the consulate building. Then Prince Mohammed contacted Khashoggi by phone and tried to convince him to return to Riyadh,” the report said.
“Khashoggi refused Prince Mohammed’s offer out of fear he would be arrested and killed if he returned. The assassination team then killed Khashoggi after the conversation ended.”
Here's a timeline of all the events from Khashoggi’s disappearance up to now, showing how the Saudis’ story changed several times over the course of 17 days:
OCTOBER 2: Jamal Khashoggi entered Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul to finalise documents to marry his fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, who was waiting outside at the time.
After waiting three hours, Ms Cengiz went inside to ask the consulate’s staff where her husband-to-be was.
She was told Khashoggi had already left the building via the backdoor.
OCTOBER 5: The kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman claimed Khashoggi left the consulate after “a few minutes or one hour”.
He insisted Khashoggi was no longer inside the consulate and that Turkish authorities were welcome to conduct their own search.
“My understanding is he entered and he got out after a few minutes or one hour. I’m not sure. We are investigating this through the foreign ministry to see exactly what happened at that time,” he told Bloomberg. “We have nothing to hide.”
OCTOBER 6: Saudi Arabia’s consul in Istanbul reopened to prove Khashoggi was not being held hostage on its premises.
“I would like to confirm that … Jamal is not at the consulate nor in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the consulate and the embassy are working to search for him,” consul-general Mohammad al-Otaibi told Reuters.
OCTOBER 7: Turkish officials said Khashoggi had been killed at the consulate.
“The initial assessment of the Turkish police is that Mr Khashoggi has been killed at the consulate of Saudi Arabia in Istanbul. We believe that the murder was premeditated and the body was subsequently moved out of the consulate,” a Turkish official told Reuters.
Saudi Arabia denied the allegations and said in a statement that they were “baseless”.
OCTOBER 8: The Crown Prince’s younger brother Prince Khaled bin Salman doubled down on claims that Saudi Arabia played no role in Khashoggi’s death.
“I assure you that the reports that suggest that Jamal Kashoggi went missing in the consulate in Istanbul or that the kingdom’s authorities have detained him or killed him are absolutely false and baseless,” he told Axios reporter Jonathan Swan in a WhatsApp message.
“Do you have footage of him leaving the consulate?” Swan replied.
The prince did not respond.
OCTOBER 10: Turkish media published images of Khashoggi entering the consulate, and of an alleged 15-member Saudi “assassination squad” entering the country.
While Saudi officials remained silent as the images were published, state media outlet Al Arabiya criticised the media coverage, saying: “The mystery over missing Saudi journalist Jamal Kashoggi has been riddled with misreported news, dubious sources and orchestrated media campaigns.”
US President Donald Trump also weighed in, saying he had spoken to Saudi authorities and that the US was working closely with Turkey.
OCTOBER 12: A delegation from Saudi Arabia arrive in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, to investigate Khashoggi’s disappearance.
OCTOBER 13: Saudi Arabia’s interior minister described claims that they were “ordered to kill (Khashoggi)” as “lies and baseless allegations”, reiterating the ongoing line that the journalist had left the building on his own accord.
OCTOBER 14: Mr Trump warned of “severe” consequences if Saudi Arabia was found to be involved in Khashoggi’s disappearance. In response, a commentator from the kingdom warned against any sanctions, saying the US would “stab its own economy to death” if it tried to punish the kingdom.
OCTOBER 15: Teams of Turkish investigators arrive at the consulate to begin their search.
A Saudi-owned satellite news channel claimed the 15-member team dubbed Khashoggi’s “hit squad” were “tourists” visiting Turkey.
Meanwhile, Mr Trump floated a theory that those involved in Khashoggi’s disappearance were “rogue killers”.
OCTOBER 16: The Saudi consul in Istanbul — a key witness in the case — abruptly left Turkey for Saudi Arabia without warning.
OCTOBER 19: Asked whether he finds the Saudi explanation that Khashoggi was killed during a “fistfight” credible, Mr Trump responds: “I do. I do.”
OCTOBER 20: Saudi Arabia finally admitted that Khashoggi was killed in their consulate in Istanbul after a fight broke out with the people he met there.
“The investigations are still under way and 18 Saudi nationals have been arrested,” state media said. They made no mention of where his body was.
A Saudi foreign ministry official said the kingdom was investigating the “regrettable and painful incident of Jamal Khashoggi’s death”, as well as forming a committee to hold those responsible accountable.
This marks a massive contradiction to Saudi officials’ previous claims that Khashoggi left the consulate on his own accord, that Saudi Arabia had played no role in his death and that the “hit squad” were innocent tourists.
OCTOBER 21: An anonymous senior Saudi official revealed the 15-man “assassination squad” had threatened Khashoggi with drugging and kidnapping, and killed him in a chokehold when he resisted.
A member of the team then dressed in Khashoggi’s clothes to make it appear as if he had left the consulate.
There are still contradictory accounts over exactly how he died; Turkish officials suspect his body was cut up but the Saudi official claimed it was rolled up in a rug and given to a “local cooperator” for disposal.
Asked about allegations that Khashoggi had been tortured and beheaded, he said preliminary results of the investigation did not suggest that.
Meanwhile, Mr Trump reverted back to criticising Saudi Arabia's explanation, telling the Washington Post that “obviously there’s been deception, and there’s been lies”.
OCTOBER 22: A new bombshell report linked Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the murder of Khashoggi.
The report alleged bin Salman telephoned the Washington Post columnist moment before he was killed in the consulate.
“Khashoggi was detained by the Saudi team inside the consulate building. Then Prince Mohammed contacted Khashoggi by phone and tried to convince him to return to Riyadh,” the report alleges.
“Khashoggi refused Prince Mohammed’s offer out of fear he would be arrested and killed if he returned. The assassination team then killed Khashoggi after the conversation ended.”
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