In the case where 26 defendants are on trial for the murder of the Washington Post columnist, Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, the prosecutor's office demanded that the trial be transferred to the judicial authorities of Saudi Arabia. The decision in question was seen as a result of the rapprochement between Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
The trial of 26 defendants regarding the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was heard at the Istanbul 11th High Criminal Court. While 26 fugitive defendants, who had a warrant of arrest, did not attend the hearing, the prosecutor's office, which gave its opinion on the merits, decided to stop the file and demanded that the necessary procedural actions be taken to ensure the transfer of the trial to the judicial authorities of Saudi Arabia. The court board decided to write a letter to the Ministry of Justice to express its opinion on the transfer of the file to the Saudi Arabian judicial authorities and postponed the hearing.
WHAT DOES THE KHASHOGGI DECISION MEAN?
It was noteworthy that in the case where 26 defendants were tried for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in the Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Istanbul, the prosecutor's office demanded that the trial be transferred to the judicial authorities of Saudi Arabia. While the said decision is seen as a result of the rapprochement between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia has not yet made a statement regarding the issue. It is known that Saudi Arabia is another actor with Turkey, which has recently experienced ‘normalization’ with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Israeli regime, is in a close relationship.