Bianca Rahimi

Press TV, London

A year on Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman has finally commented on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi saying because it happened on his watch, he is responsible. However he still insists it was a rogue operation he knew nothing about. The Saudi regime is known as one of the most brutal that holds mass trials and executions with little regard for international law so the question is, would any operative dare carry out such a mission without the monarchy’s authorization?

Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on the second of October 2018 and was set upon by 15 Saudi intelligence operatives. Audio tapes that the Turkish government later shared with world leaders verify he was drugged and then dismembered. Riyadh insisted the Crown prince knew nothing about it but the story dominated the international headlines for months. Riyadh tried to defuse the situation by accusing 11 unknown operatives of the murder and handing 5 of them death sentences. But according to the UN’s report the suspect’s trial, which was not open to the public and trial observers, was a sham that fell short of international standards. The UN investigation launched in June 2019 says evidence suggests Bin Salman is liable for the brutal murder.

In self imposed exile Jamal Khashoggi wrote scathing articles about the Saudi monarchy. The Kingdom has one of the worst human rights records in the world yet its western allies have failed to put human rights concerns above petro-dollars and continue selling Riyadh state of the art military equipment.