US media covers Turkey's Khashoggi statement

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON

American media has highlighted the mystery of the whereabouts of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's body, who was killed inside the Saudi embassy in Istanbul, according to the prosecutor's office.

Turkish prosecutors noted authorities from both countries had come to a mutual agreement on carrying out a thorough investigation, revealing all details and bring the offenders and plotters to justice.

"Victim Jamal Khashoggi was strangled to death -- in a premeditated way -- soon after he entered the Istanbul Consulate of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Oct. 2, 2018 for wedding procedures," the Istanbul Prosecutor's Office said in a statement. "His body was disposed of after being dismembered following his death by suffocation - again, in line with the plans."

As part of the agreement, Saudi Attorney General Saud al-Mujeb, along with a delegation, went to Turkey on Oct. 28 and visited the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on Oct. 29.

The U.S. press highlighted Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Irfan Fidan's investigation on the murder, highlighting the question of where Khashoggi's body was.

The Washington Post carried the headline, "Prosecutor says Khashoggi was strangled and dismembered, but fate of body still a mystery,” in which is said the prosecutor laid out the most detailed description of how Khashoggi was killed.

"But the new information did not address the question that has bedeviled investigators and been the subject of furious speculation: What happened to Khashoggi’s remains?" it wrote.

The report revealed that a senior Turkish official was working on the theory that Khashoggi's body was melted with acid, somewhere around the residence of the consulate or ambassador.

The New York Times said the killing of Khashoggi "has significantly raised tensions between Saudi Arabia and Turkey. "

"Western intelligence analysts and Turkish officials have maintained that the operation could not have been carried out without the consent of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto leader of Saudi Arabia," it wrote.

Bin Salman had sent al-Mujeb to Istanbul, but Fidan's statement said the talks were not concrete.

The Wall Street Journal carried a headline, "Turkish Prosecutors Criticize Lack of Saudi Clarity on Fate of Journalist’s Body," after the statement.

It said "talks in Istanbul fail to solve mystery of what happened to remains of Jamal Khashoggi after he was killed at consulate."

"The Saudi prosecutor, who invited Istanbul prosecutors to Riyadh to cooperate on the probe, also appeared to distance himself from comments that the killing had been premeditated," the Journal added.

Saudi authorities initially said the body was given to "a local operator," a claim later denied by al-Mujeb.

CNN said the Turkish prosecutor's statement is the "clearest yet from the Turkish authorities about" the fate of slain journalist, whose remains have not yet been found.

Another channel broadcasting in the U.S., ABC News, said a Turkish prosecutor publicly confirmed for the first time that Khashoggi was strangled and his body was dismembered.

It said the Turkish authorities have asked the Saudis where they disposed of Khashoggi's body but have gotten no response.

The Associated Press said Turkey was seeking the extradition of 18 suspects in the journalist’s killing who were detained in Saudi Arabia.

"It also is pressing Saudi Arabia for information about who ordered Khashoggi’s killing and the location of his remains," said the report.