The Sorry Door Of The Khashoggi Family: A Flashback To The Journalist's Heinous Murder

Jamal Khashoggi (Instagram/@JKhashoggi)

JAKARTA - The latest story from the murder of journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. Khashoggi's son, Salah uploaded a very uploading tweet, claiming to have forgiven those who killed his father.

Friday, May 21st, Salah wrote, "On this blessed night, in this blessed month (Ramadan), we remember God's words, 'If someone forgives and makes reconciliation, the reward is from Allah.'"

"We are therefore the sons of the martyr, Jamal Khashoggi, declaring pardon for those who killed our father. For the blessings and rewards of the Almighty," he added as quoted by Reuters, Friday, May 22.

October 2, 2018, Khashoggi entered the Saudi Arabian consulate office in Turkey to arrange marriage documents with his fiancé, a Turkish woman named Hatice Cengiz. CCTV recorded Khashoggi entering the consulate, although it never showed any signs of leaving the building.

Khashoggi's death still leaves many questions. In December 2019, a court in Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to death in connection with Khashoggi's murder.

The public prosecutor said Khashoggi's murder was the result of an "illegal operation". Saudi Arabia says it has tried eleven people, although they never identified themselves.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman

Last Thursday, May 14, Khashoggi's fiancé, Hatice Cengiz wrote an open letter to fans of the English football club, Newcastle United. Cengiz asked fans to reject Prince Mohammed bin Salman's planned purchase of The Magpies.

'I asked, is it the right thing to accept Mohammed bin Salman's offer? How can the club you love be controlled by the man who should be tried for murder? As a loyal fan, you have a say in this. I hope that you can unite to protect your beloved club from Mohammed bin Salman and the people around him, '' Cengiz wrote, quoted by TalkSports.

The Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has long been called the mastermind behind Khashoggi's murder. A number of human rights activist organizations, legal advocacy organizations, and the United Nations (UN) have pointed to Mohammed's nose along with a number of findings about his involvement in killing the Washington Post columnist.

UN Special Rapporteur Agnes Callamard has previously pushed for an investigation into Mohammed. He said what happened to Khashoggi was an extra-court execution.

World governments also strongly condemn Khashoggi's murder. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called this killing barbaric. Other European countries, such as Germany, Finland and Denmark, even had time to suspend sales of military weapons to Saudi Arabia in protest against the transparency of investigations carried out by the authorities.

Sadistic murder

The details of Khashoggi's murder contained in the UN report describe the gruesome death process that the 59-year-old man suffered. That day, Khashoggi died after being dragged, strangled, and finally mutilated by eleven people who were sent from Riyadh.

The report is based on audio intelligence evidence describing a situation in which executors discussed how to cut and transport Khashoggi's body. In fact, a few minutes before Khashoggi entered the building, an executor asked, "Has the sacrificial animal arrived?"

Khashoggi's voice is heard in the recording. About 24 minutes since Khashoggi arrived at the consulate, Turkish intelligence heard the sound of chainsaws and tearing of plastic bags. The heinous killings were carried out by Saudis, including a close friend of Mohammed, Chief Intelligence Major General Ahmed Asri, and Saud al-Qahtani, who was Mohammed's right hand man.

"The joints will be separated. It's not a problem. His body is heavy. First, I have to cut it on the floor. If we take a plastic bag and cut it into pieces, it will be finished. We will wrap each piece," said the famous Saudi forensic doctor Mohammed Mohammed. Tubaigy with senior intelligence officer Maher Abdulaziz al-Mutreb.

The trigger for the Khashoggi murder

Jamal Khashoggi (Instagram / @ JKhashoggi)

Quoted from era.id, in February 2019, the New York Times released a report containing a conversation between Mohammed and his aide in 2017. In that conversation, Mohammed said he would use a bullet if Khashoggi did not return to Saudi Arabia and end criticism of his government.

From his role as a journalist, Khashoggi often criticized Royal circles. It all started in 2017, when Khashoggi was exiled to the United States (US). There, he began writing for the Washington Post column. Through writing, Khashoggi is consistent in his criticism.

In fact, in his first writing for the Washington Post, Khashoggi expressed criticism of the arrest of Saudi Arabian intellectual actors under Mohammed's leadership. Khashoggi said, "Saudi Arabia has not always been repressive. However, at the moment it is unbearable," wrote.

Khashoggi also highlighted the regional agenda of Mohammed who served as defense minister in the Yemen War. Khashoggi condemned any attempts to suppress democracy and freedom of expression throughout the Middle East region, which is largely sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

"Fear, intimidation, arrest and public humiliation of intellectuals, as well as the arrest of religious leaders who dare to express their opinions," Khashoggi wrote in his first article September 2017, quoted by the Washington Post.