WASHINGTON – In a blunt remark, US President Donald Trump has said it appears that the missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi is dead, vowing ‘severe’ consequences for those found to be responsible.
In an interview with The New York Times, Trump said his conclusion was based on intelligence coming from every side.
‘Unless the miracle of all miracles happens, I would acknowledge that he’s dead,’ Trump told the Times adding, it’s bad, bad stuff.
The president did not elaborate on what action his administration could take over the death as US lawmakers have suggested a range of steps, from economic sanctions on Saudi Arabia to blocking U.S. weapons sales to the Holy Kingdom but Trump has said he doesn’t want to disrupt the long-standing U.S. alliance with Saudi Arabia.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/world/jamal-khashoggi-hit-squad-suspect-dies-in-mysterious-traffic-accident-in-riyadh-report/
The Saudi journalist, who was critical of the policies of the kingdom and royal family, has been missing since entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Turkish officials said he was murdered inside the building, but Saudi officials denied that.
In another media interaction, Trump said he wanted to wait for the results of Saudi and Turkish investigations before deciding what action the United States should take.
‘This one has caught the imagination of the world, unfortunately. It’s not a positive. Not a positive,’ Trump said.
Earlier on Thursday, Trump met with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to discuss the Khashoggi case; Pompeo had just returned from an emergency trip to Saudi Arabia and Turkey, and he told Trump the United States needs to give the Saudis a few more days to investigate Khashoggi’s fate.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/world/saudis-promise-to-spare-none-in-jamal-khashoggi-probe-says-pompeo/
‘We made clear to them that we take this matter very seriously,’ Pompeo said of his conversations with Saudi officials in Riyadh.
Amid rising criticism on the Oil-rich kingdom, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said secretary-general Guterres remains very concerned about Khashoggi’s fate and has repeatedly called for the truth to come out in this situation.
‘As a matter of principle, the secretary-general can initiate an investigation if all the parties involved request it, or if there’s a legislative mandate from a U.N. body,’ Dujarric said.
