Khashoggi murder trial must be held in Turkey


For a month now, the world has been talking about the brutal murder of Saudi journalist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Now, none of us have a question mark in our minds about the triggermen and who ordered the murder. This is because the Turkish prosecutors clarified the issue before the world during the investigative process, especially followed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Every second of the murder, which was committed within a few hours, is now known.

We all witnessed what happened after the murder. The hit squad, which turned out to be a special team sent by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), hurriedly escaped from the consulate after the murder. The Saudi administration accepted the murder days after the incident and Riyadh delayed Turkish police from entering the building to investigate the crime scene through a diplomatic shield.

Obviously, what we have on our hands is not an accident like the Saudis claim, but an assassination that the central administration knew well about. However, the world's deep interest in the incident is not enough to promote the legal process and ensure justice. This is because the family that rules the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is at the helm of rich oil fields. The family is also very generous in paying hush money when it is "needed." It is purchasing plenty of arms from the U.S. and European countries as well as trading with Russia and China "without bargaining," in a way avoiding offending the West.

For this reason, no leader other than German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks about stopping arms sales to the Saudis. The states, which were unable to wait for the United Nations resolution to shoot Libya, do not see the organization explicitly pointing to the Saudi administration with the following statement. "In order to clarify this shockingly brazen-faced crime, Riyadh must explain where the body is."

Not only administrations but also nongovernmental organizations and the academy, which are supposed to study the incident, are silent. After all, how could they speak? According to the Associated Press (AP), 37 universities in the U.S. have received a total of $354 million in funds from the Saudi government since 2011. With the exception of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), no one has announced they will revise relations with the Saudi administration.

Well, what will happen next? Will the world just gulp back in the face of this brutal execution which could be found only in the darkness of the Middle Ages? Will it stand by with folded arms and wait for the next crime of this mafia organization which is treated as a legitimate state? Will it pray for a "state" which does not attempt for mass terrorist actions despite committing murders and having too many opportunities?

It has been 30 days since the murder and we are sick and tired of the game played by the brazen murderers. As the electorate, journalist organizations and civil society of the contemporary world, we must speak out and suppress the decision makers.

Our first demand is that the Khashoggi murder trial must be carried out in Istanbul, where the brutal murder was committed, by the Turkish judiciary which has strong evidence and can ask tough questions to the Saudi administration.