UK, France and Germany demand 'urgent' clarification on how Khashoggi died

UK, France and Germany demand 'urgent' clarification on how Khashoggi died
Britain, France and Germany said in a joint statement that Saudi Arabia must clarify how journalist Jamal Khashoggi died inside its Istanbul consulate, and its account must be 'credible'.
2 min read
21 October, 2018
Britain, France and Germany issued a joint statement calling for 'clarification' on Khashoggi's death. [Getty]

Britain, France and Germany on Sunday said Saudi Arabia must clarify how dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi died inside its Istanbul consulate, and its account must "be backed by facts to be considered credible".

"There remains an urgent need for clarification of exactly what happened on October 2nd - beyond the hypotheses that have been raised so far in the Saudi investigation, which need to be backed by facts to be considered credible," the three countries said in a joint statement.

"We thus stress that more efforts are needed and expected towards establishing the truth in a comprehensive, transparent and credible manner," they added.

"We will ultimately make our judgement based on the credibility of the further explanation we receive about what happened and our confidence that such a shameful event cannot and will not ever be repeated."

After a fortnight of denials, Saudi authorities admitted on Saturday that the Washington Post columnist, a prominent critic of powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed after entering the consulate in Turkey on 2 October.

But it has faced a growing chorus of incredulity over its belated explanation that he died in a "brawl", as world powers demand answers and the whereabouts of his body.

Earlier, Britain said Saudi Arabia's account of the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside its Istanbul consulate was not credible and the culprits must be "held to account".

"I don't think it's credible," Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC, adding there was a "serious question mark over the account that has been given".

"We support the Turkish investigation into it, and the British government wants to see people held to account for that death." 

After initially saying Khashoggi left the consulate unharmed, and then that they were investigating his disappearance, Saudi authorities conceded the 60-year-old was killed inside the diplomatic compound.

But many questions have remained unanswered since the admission.

Turkish officials have accused Riyadh of carrying out a state-sponsored killing and dismembering the body, with Turkish media reporting the existence of video and audio evidence to back those claims.

Police have searched a forest in Istanbul where they believe his body may have been disposed of.

Ankara has vowed to reveal all the details of a two-week inquiry

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