An anonymous source claims to have obtained the audio recording of journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s terrifying final moments as he was butchered by a Saudi execution squad. It is believed that the veteran broadcaster, who was once editor-in-chief of Al-Arab News, was killed after visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
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According to the Daily Mail, the audio was recorded on Khashoggi’s Apple Watch and reveals that he was dragged from the Saudi Consul General’s office to a table in a next-door study, before being savagely dismembered. The audio then allegedly captured the journalist’s ear-piercing screams as he was being butchered, before he was “injected with an unknown drug” and rendered completely silent.
The operation to assassinate the journalist was allegedly organized by a high-ranking officer with the General Intelligence Presidency, which Saudi Arabia’s main intelligence service, CNN reports.
Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at Istanbul airport Tuesday to discuss the case of the missing journalist. According to the Guardian, Erdoğan said Tuesday that police had found freshly painted walls and “toxic” substances after searching the consulate. Turkish authorities have now said they have “certain evidence” that the Saudi journalist was executed by his fellow countrymen.
Pompeo also traveled to Riyadh yesterday to meet with King Salman and the Crown Prince to lessen diplomatic tensions with the Saudis in light of the Khashoggi crisis.
“We had direct and candid conversations,” Pompeo noted in an official statement released by the State Department. “I emphasized the importance of conducting a thorough, transparent, and timely investigation, and the Saudi leadership pledged to deliver precisely on that.”
He continued: “This evening, the President called the Crown Prince, who conveyed that a serious and credible investigation is already underway. He pledged that the work of the Saudi public prosecutor will produce a full and complete conclusion with full transparency for the world to see. My assessment from these meetings is that there is serious commitment to determine all the facts and ensure accountability, including accountability for Saudi Arabia’s senior leaders or senior officials.”
VP Mike Pence: "It's important that the world know the truth – if in fact Mr. Khashoggi was murdered, we need to know who was responsible. We need to hold those responsible. It's even more important that he was a member of a free and independent press." https://t.co/1qf30uro9O pic.twitter.com/Gehw0AiNPM
— The Hill (@thehill) October 17, 2018
The G7 foreign ministers signed a joint statement on Wednesday in which they noted being “very troubled” by Khashoggi’s disappearance.
“We, the G7 foreign ministers, of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the high representative of the European Union, affirm our commitment to defending freedom of expression and protection of a free press,” the statement read.
“Those bearing responsibility for his disappearance must be held to account. We encourage Turkish-Saudi collaboration and look forward to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia conducting a thorough, credible, transparent, and prompt investigation, as announced.”