US President Donald Trump says he is not satisfied with Saudi Arabia’s handling of the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul, and said questions remain unanswered.
Saudi Arabia said early on Saturday that Khashoggi, a critic of the country’s de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, had died in a fight inside its consulate in the Turkish city.
Riyadh provided no evidence to support its account, which marked a reversal of an initial statement that Khashoggi had left the consulate the same day he entered on Oct. 2 to get documents for his upcoming marriage.
Jamal Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Turkey. Source: AAP
Asked during a trip to Nevada if he was satisfied that Saudi officials had been fired over Khashoggi’s death, Mr Trump said: “No, I am not satisfied until we find the answer. But it was a big first step, it was a good first step. But I want to get to the answer.”
Turkish officials suspect Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, was killed inside the consulate by a team of Saudi agents and his body cut up.
US President Donald Trump has warned against scrapping a multibillion-dollar deal with the conservative kingdom. Source: AAP
Mr Trump said it was possible that Prince Mohammed had been unaware of the circumstances around the death of Khashoggi, a Saudi national and U.S. resident.
Mr Trump said no one seems to know where the journalist’s body is, adding that no one from his administration has seen video or a transcript of what happened inside the consulate.
While Middle Eastern allies closed ranks around the kingdom, Western reaction to the Saudi narrative varied. Trump had initially said it was credible.
However, Mr Trump warned against scrapping a multi-billion-dollar deal with the conservative kingdom.
A still image from a security cam claims to show Jamal Khashoggi arriving at Saudi Arabias consulate in Istanbul. Source: ABACA
"We have $450 billion, $110 billion of which is a military order, but this is equipment and various things ordered from Saudi Arabia," Trump told reporters.
"It's over a million jobs; that's not helpful for us to cancel an order like that. That hurts us far more than it hurts them," he added, noting Riyadh could obtain the weapons from other countries like China or Russia.
"But there are other things that could be done, including sanctions."
