The 11 suspected killers of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi have been presented in their first court hearing in the Saudi Arabia capital Riyadh according to a report of the kingdom’s state media.
The death penalty for five of the 11 suspects have been demanded by prosecutor in the case, attorney general of the country, said the official Saudi Press Agency.
Lawyers accompanied the 11 suspects to court, said a statement from prosecutors.
A request has also been sent by the prosecutors to Turkey asking got the evidence that Ankara possessed which it had reportedly gathered during its investigations in the suspected murder., the statement from the prosecutors also said. The disappearance and suspected murder of Khashoggi by Saudi hitmen has severely dented the international reputation of Saudi Arabia and has also created tensions in its relationships with a number of Western allays.
Khashoggi has been missing since October 2 after he had entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on some personal work. It was later alleged by Turkish authorities that a Saudi hit team had murdered the veteran journalist inside the consulate.
The demands of Turkey that all the suspects be handed over to it for trial in the country were refused by Saudi Arabia.
Turkey has regularly accused Saudi Arabia of not cooperating on this case, said Al Jazeera's Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Ankara.
"The Turkish foreign minister also stated before that the Saudi prosecutor's office has never shared any information about those 11 people who have been arrested," Koseoglu said.
"This death sentence decision... will most likely not be welcomed by Ankara, because it will mean that Saudi Arabia will prevent those people from talking."
The testimonies of the accused would not be heard by either Turkey or any other country if the accused were executed in Saudi Arabia, Koseoglu said.
Pictures of the presence of members of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince's entourage at the consulate before the murder of Khashoggi have been published in the Turkish media.
Turkey was in consultation with other countries so that the investigation into Khashoggi's murder could be carried over to the UN, said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in December 2018.
It was about a month before this announcement that a meeting was held between the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with Cavusoglu over the murder of the journalist who was a severe critic of the Saudi establishment.
So far no formal request had been received by the UN from Turkey, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric has told reporters at that time.
Following the revelation of the incident, there were several western intelligence agencies claiming that the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had prior knowledge of the murder which has raised questions about the role of the crown prince.
The claims of Saudi Arabia that the crown prince was unaware of the killing have also been questioned by a number of US senators. Saudi authorities had described the killing of Khashoggi was the work of "rogue elements" of the country.
"You have to be wilfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organised by people under the command of MBS," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters in December.
Authorities are yet to find any remains of the body of Khashoggi and it is believed that his body has been dismembered.
(Source:www.vox.xom)
The death penalty for five of the 11 suspects have been demanded by prosecutor in the case, attorney general of the country, said the official Saudi Press Agency.
Lawyers accompanied the 11 suspects to court, said a statement from prosecutors.
A request has also been sent by the prosecutors to Turkey asking got the evidence that Ankara possessed which it had reportedly gathered during its investigations in the suspected murder., the statement from the prosecutors also said. The disappearance and suspected murder of Khashoggi by Saudi hitmen has severely dented the international reputation of Saudi Arabia and has also created tensions in its relationships with a number of Western allays.
Khashoggi has been missing since October 2 after he had entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on some personal work. It was later alleged by Turkish authorities that a Saudi hit team had murdered the veteran journalist inside the consulate.
The demands of Turkey that all the suspects be handed over to it for trial in the country were refused by Saudi Arabia.
Turkey has regularly accused Saudi Arabia of not cooperating on this case, said Al Jazeera's Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Ankara.
"The Turkish foreign minister also stated before that the Saudi prosecutor's office has never shared any information about those 11 people who have been arrested," Koseoglu said.
"This death sentence decision... will most likely not be welcomed by Ankara, because it will mean that Saudi Arabia will prevent those people from talking."
The testimonies of the accused would not be heard by either Turkey or any other country if the accused were executed in Saudi Arabia, Koseoglu said.
Pictures of the presence of members of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince's entourage at the consulate before the murder of Khashoggi have been published in the Turkish media.
Turkey was in consultation with other countries so that the investigation into Khashoggi's murder could be carried over to the UN, said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in December 2018.
It was about a month before this announcement that a meeting was held between the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with Cavusoglu over the murder of the journalist who was a severe critic of the Saudi establishment.
So far no formal request had been received by the UN from Turkey, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric has told reporters at that time.
Following the revelation of the incident, there were several western intelligence agencies claiming that the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had prior knowledge of the murder which has raised questions about the role of the crown prince.
The claims of Saudi Arabia that the crown prince was unaware of the killing have also been questioned by a number of US senators. Saudi authorities had described the killing of Khashoggi was the work of "rogue elements" of the country.
"You have to be wilfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organised by people under the command of MBS," Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters in December.
Authorities are yet to find any remains of the body of Khashoggi and it is believed that his body has been dismembered.
(Source:www.vox.xom)
