Khashoggi murder: UN investigator urges US for action

The United Nations human rights expert Agnes Callamard who conducted an independent probe into the murder Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Tuesday urged the US to act on her damning findings. Callamard, a UN special rapporteur who concluded that his death at the Saudi consulate was “an extrajudicial execution” by the Gulf kingdom, criticised the US over its inaction.

“(It) has the jurisdiction or at least the interest to take action,” she said.

“Silence is not an option. Speaking up is required but not enough. We have to act,” Callamard said.

Khashoggi, a US-based writer who annoyed the prince through critical columns in The Washington Post, was strangled to death and dismembered after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to handle wedding paperwork, according to US and Turkish officials.

Callamard added she was not granted any access to the CIA, the US Department of Justice or other Trump officials.

A number of US lawmakers have described the killing as a turning point in relations with Saudi Arabia and voiced outrage that the Trump administration has maintained its cozy relationship with the oil-rich kingdom and the prince.

Most recently, the administration defiantly approved USD 8.1 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other Arab allies, citing risks from Iran to bypass the usual process of seeking a congressional green light.

Earlier, Washington Post reported that some members of the team that brutally killed Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi received training in the United States.

After having denied the murder, Saudi Arabia said the operation was carried out by agents who were out of control. A trial of 11 suspects opened earlier this year in Saudi Arabia. But much of the case remains shrouded, beginning with the role of country’s powerful crown prince and de facto ruler Salman.