5 men sentenced to death for the murder of WaPo journalist Jamal Khashoggi
Five people were sentenced to death Monday as punishment for the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. A public prosecutor said another 10 defendants were released due to insufficient evidence.
Khashoggi was killed and dismembered on October 2, 2018 near the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. His criticism of Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's policies were said to be the reason for the punishment. The men behind the act were thought to have been working for or in support of the highest levels of the Saudi government and bin Salman.
On November 2, 2018 the CIA revealed a recording of bin Salman ordering Khashoggi to be "silenced."
“The Central Intelligence Agency is in possession of a phone call recording of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in which he is heard giving an instruction to ‘silence Jamal Khashoggi as soon as possible,’ Hürriyet columnist Abdulkadir Selvi wrote on November 22,” according to a report in Mediaite.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump said at the time, “King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman vigorously deny any knowledge of the planning or execution of the murder of Mr. Khashoggi. Our intelligence agencies continue to assess all information, but it could very well be that the Crown Prince had knowledge of this tragic event – maybe he did and maybe he didn’t!”
Just spoke with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia who totally denied any knowledge of what took place in their Turki… https://t.co/d26Etc37Q1— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1539715218
...during the call, and told me that he has already started, and will rapidly expand, a full and complete investiga… https://t.co/P4dcRYfGmP— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1539715219
Responses ran the gamut on Twitter following the ruling Monday.
When Saudis sentence five to death for Khashoggi's murder, we fear that it is a way to silence them for ever and to… https://t.co/q8XM8U4BxN— Christophe Deloire (@Christophe Deloire) 1577096288
Imagine being sent to murder a journalist and then the people who sent the murderers sentence the murderers to deat… https://t.co/9ilRCjXETD— Nihal Arthanayake 🏳️🌈🇱🇰🏴🇬🇧🇺🇦 (@Nihal Arthanayake 🏳️🌈🇱🇰🏴🇬🇧🇺🇦) 1577097571
"Expeditious justice. A closed trial. Five death sentences. This is how the Saudi authorities decided to protect th… https://t.co/jMJS03I1dz— IFJ (@IFJ) 1577106271
Saudi Arabia sentences five to death for the brutal murder of journalist Jamal #Khashoggi, but questions remain abo… https://t.co/amfcwRdwFe— Nieman Foundation (@Nieman Foundation) 1577106349
#SaudiArabia Initial ruling of 5 death sentences against defendants on charges of murder and accessory in murder th… https://t.co/Y40yUyLjjE— خالد الشريف (@خالد الشريف) 1577094828
Public Announcement regarding Saudi Sentences five to death in #Khashoggi Case https://t.co/abk2r61ULm— Türk Arap Medya Derneği (@Türk Arap Medya Derneği) 1577105050
"Jamal Khashoggi" was brutally murdered and Trump aided in the coverup....so that makes him an accessory to murder.… https://t.co/DpMTklqT3w— SilverAdie Art 🌈 Music 🪐Science—Political Parody (@SilverAdie Art 🌈 Music 🪐Science—Political Parody) 1577102272
