Saudi Arabia’s leaders doubled down Tuesday with their denials of any involvement in the disappearance of U.S.-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey, even as Turkish officials suggested that Riyadh scrambled over the past two weeks to cover up evidence that could prove the journalist was kidnapped or killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo engaged in fast-paced shuttle diplomacy to defuse international tension over the case. He met in Riyadh with Saudi King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, before heading Wednesday to Turkey to meet with Turkish leaders.
President Trump, who has made strong ties to Saudi Arabia a cornerstone of his Middle East foreign policy, warned against a rush to judgment amid a swirl of rumors over the fate of Mr. Khashoggi and a growing chorus of lawmakers on Capitol Hill demanding that Riyadh come clean.
While saying it would be bad if it was proved that top Saudi officials ordered the operation, Mr. Trump, in an interview with The Associated Press, compared the case to that of the swarm of accusations hurled at his Supreme Court nominee, Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.
“I think we have to find out what happened first,” Mr. Trump said. “Here we go again with, you know, you’re guilty until proven innocent. I don’t like that.”
After the release of videos showing a smiling Mr. Pompeo conversing with the crown prince, the secretary of state said in a statement that he had “direct and candid conversations” with the king, crown prince and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, all three of whom “strongly denied any knowledge of what took place in their consulate in Istanbul.”
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“I emphasized the importance of conducting a thorough, transparent and timely investigation, and the Saudi leadership pledged to deliver precisely on that,” said the secretary of state, who added that Crown Prince Mohammed personally pledged that Saudi Arabia’s “public prosecutor will produce a full and complete conclusion with full transparency for the world to see.”
Attorney General Jeff Sessions told reporters Tuesday that “serious evaluation” is underway over whether U.S. law enforcement officials will aid in the investigation.
But the day’s events only added to the pressure building on the Saudi leaders to account for Mr. Khashoggi, who has not been seen or heard from since entering the consulate two full weeks ago to obtain documents allowing him to marry his fiancee. Mr. Pompeo’s statement made no allusion to media reports that the Saudi royal family was on the verge of acknowledging that Mr. Khashoggi was killed accidentally during a botched interrogation.
The fallout has been immediate and widespread. Washington public relations firms have canceled contracts with the kingdom, the Saudi ambassador to Washington hurriedly returned home, and leading corporate and Wall Street figures canceled plans to attend a much-touted Saudi investor conference set for this month.
Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven leading industrial powers issued a joint statement expressing deep concern about the journalist’s disappearance and saying those responsible must be held to account. The statement from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and United States as well as the European Union affirmed a commitment to defending freedom of expression and protection of a free press, The Associated Press reported.
Turkish stop
Mr. Pompeo is likely to get more details in talks with Turkish officials, who have been leaking increasingly graphic accounts of what might have happened to Mr. Khashoggi in the Saudi diplomatic compound. Turkish officials have pointed to a 15-man Saudi “hit squad” — along with a bone saw — that traveled to Ankara just in time for Mr. Khashoggi’s Oct. 2 appointment and left quickly afterward.
Although Riyadh and Ankara belatedly agreed to a joint task force to investigate the incident and inspect the consulate, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested again Tuesday that the Saudis are scrambling to hide evidence of what really happened to the journalist, who was an outspoken critic of the Saudi royal family and of the hard-charging crown prince.
Mr. Erdogan told reporters that Turkish investigators, who searched the Saudi Consulate on Monday night, found fresh paint covering potentially crucial evidence, including “toxic materials” that could be tied to Mr. Khashoggi’s disappearance.
Another Turkish official told The Associated Press that the search of the Saudi Consulate uncovered “certain evidence” that Mr. Khashoggi was killed there.
Searches of such diplomatic posts, considered foreign soil under international law, are extraordinary, and Mr. Erdogan’s comments emphasized how thin the trust is between Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The Saudis allowed the consulate search only after days of pressure from Ankara and Washington.
Prior to the search, journalists had photographed a cleaning crew arriving at the Saudi Consulate with mops, trash bags and what appeared to be bottles of bleach. Investigators were preparing to carry out a second search — this time of the Saudi consul’s home in Istanbul. The Saudi consul, according to Turkish media reports, returned home Tuesday on his diplomatic passport.
Saudi officials have said the allegations are “baseless” but have yet to produce hard evidence that Mr. Khashoggi ever left the consulate.
The 59-year-old journalist, who spent much of the past year writing columns critical of Saudi Arabia’s leaders for The Washington Post, has two children who are U.S. citizens.
His disappearance has caused headaches for the Trump administration and calls from lawmakers for Washington to reconsider its close alliance with Saudi Arabia and the Crown Prince Mohammed.
The pressure for answers has mounted in recent days. Mr. Trump said in a tweet Tuesday that he had spoken with the 33-year-old crown prince while Mr. Pompeo was visiting Riyadh and was assured that “answers will be forthcoming shortly.”
On Monday after a telephone call with King Salman, Mr. Trump floated the idea that a group of “rogue” killers — not Saudi government operatives — might have targeted Mr. Khashoggi.
Critics say Mr. Trump and his son-in-law and top adviser, Jared Kushner, are being spun by the Saudis in the face of a flagrant abuse of human rights. Mr. Kushner has developed close ties with the crown prince, and Mr. Trump has praised Saudi Arabia’s role as a buyer of American arms, a potentially moderating force in world oil markets and a bulwark against the regional ambitions of Iran.
Mr. Trump previously promised “severe punishment” if the Saudis are found to have assassinated Mr. Khashoggi, but he has expressed reluctance to allow the case to derail coveted weapons deals with Riyadh that the administration touts as a major U.S. job creator.
Some in Congress are not willing to wait for Mr. Pompeo’s fact-finding mission to conclude.
Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican, said Tuesday that the human rights fallout from the Khashoggi incident is more devastating to America’s image than any potential loss of arms sales.
“I don’t care how much money it is,” Mr. Rubio told CNN. “There isn’t enough money in the world to purchase back our credibility on human rights and the way nations should conduct themselves.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican, called for Crown Prince Mohammed to be ousted from power. “This guy has got to go,” Mr. Graham told Fox News. “Saudi Arabia, are you listening? There’s a lot of good people you can choose, but [Mohammed] has tainted your country and tainted himself.”
Mr. Graham said he was one of Riyadh’s staunchest supporters in Congress but now feels “used and abused” and that Washington will “sanction the hell out of Saudi Arabia” if Riyadh is found to have ordered Mr. Khashoggi’s assassination.
• This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Guy Taylor can be reached at gtaylor@washingtontimes.com.
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