Khashoggi murder: Justice minister says he had no option but to pass the case to Saudi Arabia
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Turkey's move to hand over the case concerning the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia was "completely legal," the justice minister has said.
"Since 2018, no progress has been made in the trial. Because there are 26 defendants, these defendants need to be brought before the Turkish court, and [they could not be] because they are citizens of Saudi Arabia," he told A Haber in a live interview last night (April 11).
Turkey on April 7 approved the transfer of the case to Saudi Arabia.
Khashoggi, a columnist for the Washington Post, was murdered in October 2018 in the kingdom's consulate in İstanbul, where he had gone for paperwork for his impending marriage.
The murder was not something that could be approved of, and Turkey was the only country that had a "determined and honorable" attitude about it, Bozdağ asserted, adding that Turkey had not received a response to its requests for legal cooperation concerning the murder.
Citing Law no. 6706 on International Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters, a case can be handed over to another country if the defendants cannot be brought before the court or their statements cannot be taken, said the minister.
Thus, he said, he had no option but approving Saudi Arabia's request for the transfer of the case.
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What happened?Journalist Khashoggi disappeared after entering the Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Beşiktaş, İstanbul on October 2, 2018. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia officially confirmed on October 20 that the journalist was killed inside the consulate. The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office released a press statement on October 31, giving the following information: "Jamal Khashoggi went to the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for paperwork related to his marriage on October 2, 2018. As soon as he entered the consulate building, in a premeditated murder, he was suffocated to death and his body was dismembered and destroyed." After no progress was made in the trial concerning the murder, Turkey approved the tranfer of the case to Saudi Arabia on April 7, 2022. About Jamal KhashoggiJournalist and writer. Khashoggi was known for his opposing views about Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. He was a columnist at the Washington Post. After he expressed his criticism about the reforms introduced by bin Salman and drew reactions, he left Saudi Arabia in 2017 and moved to the US. He worked as Director-General and Editor-in-Chief at the Al Arab Media Group. He was also a media consultant at the Saudi Arabia Embassy in England. |
(HA/VK)