Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir spoke on Sunday (October 21st) about the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Turkey.
This is the first senior Saudi official to speak since Saudi Arabia on Saturday acknowledged the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir spoke on Sunday in an interview with US TV channel Fox News .
Adel al-Joubeïr said that Jamal Khashoggi was approached by a "Saudi security team" when he entered the consulate and that the team's account of what had happened was different from that of the authorities. Turkish authorities, which had prompted Saudi Arabia to open an investigation.
"We do not know where the body is"
"He was killed at the consulate. We do not know how in detail. We do not know where the body is , said the minister. We are determined to return each stone. We are determined to punish those responsible for this murder. "
The head of Saudi diplomacy also called Jamal Khashoggi's death a "huge and serious mistake" and offered his condolences to his family. "It's a terrible mistake. It's a terrible tragedy. Our condolences accompany them. We feel their pain. I assure them that the culprits will be held accountable. "
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was "not informed" of the operation, which was not authorized by Adel al-Jubeir. "The individuals who did it did so outside the scope of their responsibilities. A monumental mistake was made, which was compounded by the attempt to hide it, " he added.
Erdogan promises "the whole truth"
On Saturday, the Saudi authorities finally admitted what everyone feared: the Saudi journalist, critic of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and exiled to the United States, was killed in Saudi Arabia's consulate in Turkey. Attorney General Saoud al-Mojeb confirmed his death. "The discussions between him and the people who received him at the consulate led to a fight and a fight with fists, which led to his death," he said, quoted by the agency SPA, without specifying where his body was.
Earlier this Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stepped up to the plate on this issue. "We seek justice here, and the whole truth will be revealed [...], the bare truth , " he said at a rally in Istanbul. Meanwhile, the Turkish authorities have decided to place under police protection the Turkish girlfriend of the Saudi journalist, reported the Anadolu news agency. Hatice Cengiz was to marry Jamal Khashoggi. It was to obtain administrative documents necessary for their union that the journalist had gone to the consulate on October 2nd.
Meanwhile, in a joint statement, London, Paris and Berlin said there was "an urgent need for clarification" on the circumstances of the "unacceptable" death of the journalist, aged 59 at the time of the facts. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also warned Sunday that Germany would not allow arms exports to Saudi Arabia.
A new reaction this time evoking "lies" also came from US President Donald Trump who, after calling the Saudis' version "credible," said that "their stories go off in every direction" .