Reactions to the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi

The assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident, journalist for The Washington Post and former general manager and editor-in-chief of Al-Arab News Channel, occurred on 2 October 2018 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and was denounced by the majority of the international community.

For 18 days, Saudi Arabia denied Khashoggi had died in the consulate, before indicating a team of Saudi agents had overstepped their orders to capture him when a struggle ensued leading to his death. Turkey said it believes the killing was premeditated and approved by the Saudi government, and sought extradition of the suspects.

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, expressed support for Saudi government reserving judgment about culpability. This created a bipartisan uproar in Congress, shaking the foundations of the close American-Saudi relationship with calls for suspension of military sales. President Joe Biden, since taking office, also has not taken action against Saudi Arabia for the assassination.^[1]

Most countries without a direct tie to Saudi Arabia called for a transparent investigation and condemned the killing. Countries with direct ties characterize the aftermath as a media campaign against Saudi Arabia.