UK's stance in Khashoggi case unchanged: Foreign Office

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON

British government keeps its position for the violent killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Foreign Office said on Thursday.

Upon a request by Anadolu Agency, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said in a statement that the most recent statement by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in the House of Commons is still up-to-date.

On Tuesday, Hunt told British lawmakers that if the reports on Khashoggi killing are proven correct, this would not be compatible with their values, a statement he repeated on Wednesday at the parliament’s foreign affairs committee.

“There are all sorts of issues with respect to Saudi Arabia’s human rights record that are in sharp relief at the moment," he said.

“But … I have spoken more clearly than any Western foreign minister that if the Khashoggi stories turn out to be true, that would be inconsistent with our values.”

On Wednesday, Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's body has been disposed of after being dismembered.

The Washington Post reported earlier, based on U.S. intelligence intercepts, that Crown Prince Salman had ordered an operation to lure the journalist back to Saudi Arabia.

After weeks of denying any knowledge of his whereabouts, Saudi officials admitted that Khashoggi had been killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

Hunt also said he was not aware of any plot against Khashoggi, responding to claims by a British tabloid that British intelligence aware of a plot against the journalist.

“We are as shocked as anyone else is about what happened,” he added.

“The actions Britain and our allies take will depend on two things: Firstly, the credibility of the final explanation given by Saudi Arabia, and secondly on our confidence that such an appalling episode cannot - and will not - be repeated,” Hunt said last week.

Hunt said he was "deeply concerned" at Turkey's description of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's “murder as premeditated".