‘Major Breakthrough’: Former Saudi Royal Guard Arrested in Paris Over Murder of Jamal Khashoggi
Authorities in France arrested former Saudi Royal Guard member Khalid Aedh al-Otaibi Tuesday, one of several international suspects in the grisly murder and dismemberment of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Khashoggi was assassinated inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey three years ago in a story that made major international news and reached the highest levels of the Saudi government. Otaibi is one of 26 suspects in the murder, and his apprehension at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris marks the first international arrest in the case. He was sanctioned by the United States for his suspected role in the killing, along with 16 other individuals.
The arrest warrants were issued by Turkey through Interpol, but the Saudi government does not consider Otaibi to be a suspect. U.S. intelligence agencies reported in February that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the killing of Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi regime.
The Saudis say the killing was a “rogue operation” and that they have already “found and tried and punished” the people involved, reports MSNBC’s Matt Bradley.
Saudi Arabia had rejected a request to extradite Mr Alotaibi to Turkey, where he is being tried in absentia in Istanbul on a murder charge.
But on Tuesday, a police source confirmed French authorities had executed Turkey’s arrest warrant. Mr Alotaibi was arrested as he was about to board a flight to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital.
The Secretary General of Amnesty International, Agnès Callamard, formerly the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions, tweeted on Tuesday that this might be a “major breakthrough in the question for justice” regarding Jamal Khashoggi.
This could be a major breakthrough in the quest for justice for #JamalKhashoggi but more confirmation required. If it is indeed the same person as that named by various sanctions lists and my report, then he was at the Consulate Residence at the time. https://t.co/IQzWqi8nX1
— Agnes Callamard (@AgnesCallamard) December 7, 2021
Watch the clip above from MSNBC.
