UN Special Rapporteur Says US Should Release Information On Risk To Khashoggi's Life

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th September, 2020) UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Agnes Callamard said in a congressional testimony on Friday that the US government should release information about its knowledge of the risk Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi faced prior to being killed.

"[O]ne area that deserves much more focus is the extent to which the US government knew or should have known that the life of Mr. Khashoggi was at risk and whereas should have done more to protect him," Callamard told the US House Intelligence Committee. "The disclosure of US intelligence including any information related to a warning they may have received and to their duty to warn Mr. Khashoggi, I think is very important and part of the search for justice."

Earlier on Friday, business Insider reported citing excerpts obtained from US journalist Bob Woodward's upcoming book "Rage" that President Donald Trump had said he protected Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman from Congress over the murder of Khashoggi.

Trump also told Woodward that he did not believe bin Salman ordered Khashoggi to be killed and emphasized the importance of having Saudi Arabia as an ally in the middle East, especially with the amount of oil the country produces and the amount of money it has spent on purchasing US arms, according to excerpts from the book.

During the hearing on Friday, US lawmakers asked Callamerd whether anyone from the US government had requested to review the evidence she has, to which Callamard replied, "No, nobody did."

Khashoggi went missing in October of 2018 after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Riyadh initially denied any knowledge of the journalist's whereabouts but eventually admitted that Khashoggi was killed and dismembered inside the consulate.

Riyadh has repeatedly denied allegations that any members of the royal family were involved in the incident. A Saudi court has sentenced eight suspects for their role in Khashoggi's death.

After Khashoggi was killed, Trump took executive action to bypass Congress' efforts to cut ties with Saudi Arabia and pushed through an $8 billion arms sale.