Mohamed Minshawi-Washington
US Senator Chris Murphy has vowed to press the US Congress to hold the killers of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi accountable, confirming the involvement of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the crime.
In an interview with Al Jazeera Net on the eve of the first anniversary of the killing of Khashoggi, Murphy considered bin Salman's remarks about the crime "ridiculous." The following is the text of the interview.
How do you evaluate the official American reaction of the Trump administration to Khashoggi's murder?
I was deeply saddened to see our foreign minister travel to Riyadh to meet the Saudi crown prince days after confirming Khashoggi's murder.
The Saudis should have come to apologize for the kidnapping and murder of a journalist who was sheltering in the United States and living legally, rather than letting the world watch the pictures of Secretary Pompeo's smiling meeting with the Saudi crown prince, which seemed to support and approve of this heinous crime, and for widespread abuses. For human rights there. Those responsible for Khashoggi's murder have not been held accountable in the first year since his death, but we will continue to press for accountability.
Do you think that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is directly or indirectly involved in the killing of Khashoggi?
I have no doubt that the killing of Khashoggi would not have happened without Mohammed bin Salman's knowledge at the very least. In fact, Mohammed bin Salman's reiteration that the murder took place without his knowledge and direct order is absurd.
Do you think that today someone knows where the body or remains of Jamal Khashoggi are?
Certainly, members of the assassination team that carried out the murder, chopping and transporting the body outside the consulate in Istanbul know where it is, as well as their superiors who followed the heinous killing.
How does Khashoggi's murder affect Washington's policies on freedoms and human rights?
The United States has duties and responsibilities to confront tyranny and repression around the world, and American responsibility must double when the tyrant is our partner or ally. We will continue our efforts to improve human rights records in Saudi Arabia, and will continue to express our doubts about the nature of the special relationship and the relationship of the alliance with Saudi Arabia in particular with no common interests, and no common principles or values between us.
How has Washington's relations with Riyadh been affected by the killing of Khashoggi?
For me and many of my Senate colleagues, the killing of Jamal Khashoggi was the straw that broke the camel's back. Saudi Arabia is fueling the conflict in Yemen that has killed tens of thousands of innocent children as a result of malnutrition and starvation.
The kingdom funds an extremist version that feeds dangerous radical groups, and Riyadh supports oppressive authoritarian regimes against its people. Saudi Arabia has long adopted many policies and positions that contradict US national security interests and contradict US values.