The White House is considering forcing an exiled enemy of Turkish President Recep Erdogan from U.S. soil in order to ease tensions over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, according to NBC News.
Two unnamed officials and two other people brief on the considerations told NBC that administration officials are looking to find a legal way to push Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen so Turkey will ease pressure on Saudi Arabia.
Requests have been sent to the Justice Department and FBI for extradition, as well as queries into Mr. Gulen’s residency status.
“We want to see action on the end of the United States in terms of the extradition of Gulen. And we’re going to continue our investigation on behalf of the Khashoggi case,” a Turkish official told NBC News.
Mr. Khashoggi was killed in Turkey at the Saudi Consulate on Oct. 2, sparking a multi-national investigation into the mysterious circumstances around his death. Many suspected Saudi Arabia’s crown prince was involved, but the government denies it.
The Trump administration slapped sanctions Thursday on 17 individuals they say were involved in killing Mr. Khashoggi, who had legal residence in the U.S. and wrote for The Washington Post. The Saudi government is looking to sentence five people to death over the slaying.
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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