Suspects in Khashoggi killing will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia, Saudi government says

Saudi Arabia will not extradite more than a dozen suspects thought to be involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a U.S.–based Washington Post columnist who was killed after entering the Saudi consulate in Turkey.

Bloomberg News reported Saturday that Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir dismissed a demand from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to extradite the suspects in Khashoggi’s killing, stating that the 18 individuals would be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia.

{mosads}“The individuals are Saudi nationals, they are detained in Saudi Arabia, the investigation is in Saudi Arabia,” Al-Jubeir said at the Manama Dialogue conference in Bahrain, according to Bloomberg. “They will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia.”

Al-Jubeir’s remarks come after Turkish authorities reportedly planned to issue an extradition request for the 18 men, who are thought to be connected to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

President Trump this week offered some of his harshest rhetoric yet aimed at the Saudi government over Khashoggi’s killing, saying they pulled off a poorly handled “cover up” and promising “big trouble” for those involved.

“They had a very bad original concept. It was carried out poorly and the cover-up was one of the worst cover-ups in the history of cover-ups,” Trump said Tuesday. “Very simple. Bad deal, should have never been thought of. Somebody really messed up.”

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also warned that the U.S. is revoking visas for several Saudi officials in retaliation for the incident, and would be considering future sanctions against the country.

“These penalties will not be the last word on this matter from the United States,” Pompeo said. “We’re making very clear that the United States does not tolerate this kind of ruthless action to silence Mr. Khashoggi, a journalist, through violence.”

Trump is facing pressure from lawmakers and Turkey to punish the Saudi government for Khashoggi’s slaying. He previously has repeated Crown Prince Mohammed and King Salman’s claims that they had no knowledge of the operation and has voiced reluctance to cancel or suspend arms deals with the Saudis, arguing that such actions could cost U.S. companies billions of dollars and lost jobs.