Turkey to move trial of Khashoggi suspects to Saudi Arabia

By AYSE WIETING and SUZAN FRASER
Associated Press

ISTANBUL (AP) — A Turkish court has decided to transfer the trial of 26 Saudis accused in the gruesome killing of Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia, raising fears that those responsible for the death of the Washington Post columnist won’t be brought to justice for a crime that drew international outrage. The decision comes as Ankara is trying to repair relations with Saudi Arabia and was denounced as “scandalous” by a human rights group. It marked an abrupt reversal for Turkey, which had vowed to shed light on the killing and began prosecuting the defendants in absentia in 2020. Khashoggi, who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed Oct. 2, 2018, at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.