Prince Mohammed bin Salman, heir to the throne in Saudi Arabia, admitted for the first time carrying responsibility for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
"It happened under my direction, I assume all the responsibility, because it happened under my direction," said the prince in a documentary which the PBS channel unveiled an excerpt before its broadcast, October 1, to the day before the first anniversary of the death of the Saudi dissident.
For the first time, the Saudi Crown Prince addresses his role in Jamal Khashoggi's murder exclusively to @frontlinePBS correspond Martin Smith. Tune in or stream The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia at 9 / 8c: https://t.co/YJ7zjTdjR1 #frontlinePBS pic.twitter.com/HjKaQDlnO7
PBS (@PBS) September 26, 2019The CIA and several Western countries consider the Crown Prince as the sponsor of the murder, which Riyadh has so far denied. The assassination has aroused a wave of indignation and Mohamed ben Salmane has not made any trips to the United States or Europe.
"Political Maneuver"
After multiple contradictory statements, the Saudi authorities acknowledged that Jamal Khashoggi, who had been exiled to the United States, had been killed and dismembered by Saudi agents who acted on their own initiative.
Eleven suspects are to be tried in secret proceedings, but only a few hearings have taken place. A commission of inquiry the UN announced in June to hold evidence of the personal involvement of the Crown Prince.
>> To see: Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggi's fiancée: "I would like to know who gave the order to kill Jamal"
Khashoggi's fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, reacted at a side event at the UN General Assembly. "By admitting this, he is also distancing himself from the murder of Jamal," she said, through an interpreter. "He says it happened under his direction but he means he is not involved in this crime, his statement is a pure political maneuver."
With Reuters