Riley Dodson
A few weeks ago, one of the biggest journalists in Saudi Arabia suddenly vanished from the public’s eye. Jamal Khashoggi, renowned for his journalism and criticism of the Saudi Arabian government, has not been seen since he entered the nation’s consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. According to the BBC, many of his works covered topics such as the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the rise of Osama Bin Laden, and many other striking events over the past couple decades. Additionally, Jamal was a personal physician to King Abdulaziz Al Saud, who founded Saudi Arabia. Many years later, when Jamal fell out of favor with the Saudi, he exiled himself to the United States and largely criticized the Crown Price Mohammed bin Salman, the first to succeed King Salman, through his newspaper columns in the Washington Post.
Three days before his disappearance, Jamal told BBC’s Newshour that people are being arrested just for having an independent mind, and in his first newspaper article, he feared that he would also be arrested since the Crown Prince wanted to crackdown on dissent.
He entered the Saudi consulate in treceive a certificate that confirmed his divorce with his ex-wife so he could marry his new fiancée. According to his friends, he was treated warmly during his first visit to the consulate, and he had no concerns about his second visit – which happened to be very tragic.
As reports of Khashoggi’s disappearance flooded the media, the Saudi government initially denied—for more than two weeks—that they knew anything about his whereabouts. The Crown Prince himself claimed that he left, at most, one hour. However, Khashoggi’s fiancée was outside waiting for Khashoggi’s return for over ten hours, which conflicts with Prince Mohammed’s report. Around noon on October 22, a video was released through the media of a Khashoggi lookalike, dressed in the very same clothes as Jamal, leaving the consulate through a backdoor and abandoning his fiancée in the street – a factor that attackers failed to consider. The timing of this video is unfortunate for the Saudi Arabian government, because just two days prior, it confessed that Khashoggi was killed in a fist fight. As more reports come out that a hit team consisting of fifteen Saudi’s and a lookalike hit the media, Saudi Arabia faces mounting pressure from what appears to be a premeditated murder of an outspoken journalist.
The details of what happened after Khashoggi entered the consulate are vague and unclear amidst many different reports in the media. Saudi Arabia first claimed he was killed in a fist fight, then that he was killed in a chokehold after resisting to return back to Saudi Arabia. However, the Turkish government has a more terrifying report, that he was tortured, killed, and dismembered just minutes after walking into the consulate. The Turkish president claims to have a video of the conflict, but at this time there are very few details as to what happened inside the consulate.
Over the past couple years, President Trump has been adamant about bringing US citizens home from foreign imprisonment. Less than three weeks ago, Pastor Andrew Brunson was released from Turkish captivity, and Trump has been very aggressive towards the situation regarding Khashoggi. Initially, Saudi officials threatened that the US should not mess with the country that can control the world’s economy, but as more details are released to the public, their hostility has declined.
Currently, officials are looking for Jamal’s body in a forest near Istanbul. Many Saudi government officials have been removed from their offices in an attempt to appease condemning nations, but the end result of what appears to be an assassination of a prominent journalist remains a mystery.
Istanbul in order to receive a certificate that confirmed his divorce with his ex-wife so he could marry his new fiance. According to his friends, he was treated warmly during his first visit to the consulate, and he had no concerns about his second visit – which happened to be very tragic.
As reports of Khashoggi’s disappearance flooded the media, the Saudi government initially denied—for more than two weeks—that they knew anything about his whereabouts. The Crown Prince himself claimed that he left, at most, one hour. However, Khashoggi’s fiancée was outside waiting for Khashoggi’s return for over ten hours, which conflicts with Prince Mohammed’s report. Around noon on October 22, a video was released through the media of a Khashoggi lookalike, dressed in the very same clothes as Jamal, leaving the consulate through a backdoor and abandoning his fiance in the street – a factor that attackers failed to consider. The timing of this video is unfortunate for the Saudi Arabian government, because just two days prior, it confessed that Khashoggi was killed in a fist fight. As more reports come out that a hit team consisting of fifteen Saudi’s and a lookalike hit the media, Saudi Arabia faces mounting pressure from what appears to be a premeditated murder of an outspoken journalist.
Saudi Arabia first claimed he was killed in a fist fight, then that he was killed in a chokehold after resisting to return back to Saudi Arabia. However, the Turkish government has a more terrifying report, that he was tortured, killed, and dismembered just minutes after walking into the consulate. The Turkish president claims to have a video of the conflict, but at this time there are very few details as to what happened inside the consulate.
Over the past couple years, President Trump has been adamant about bringing US citizens home from foreign imprisonment. Less than three weeks ago, Pastor Andrew Brunson was released from Turkish captivity, and Trump has been very aggressive towards the situation regarding Khashoggi. Initially, Saudi officials threatened that the US should not mess with the country that can control the world’s economy, but as more details are released to the public, their hostility has declined.
Currently, officials are looking for Jamal’s body in a forest near Istanbul. Many Saudi government officials have been removed from their offices in an attempt to appease condemning nations, but the end result of what appears to be an assassination of a prominent journalist remains a mystery.
