Why is Saudi Arabia killing a journalist such a big issue

In My Humble Opinion
1

I haven’t been following the news lately, but the murder of a Saudi journalist in Turkey is coming up a lot.

But why is this different than all the other oppression of journalists all over the world? Russia kills lots of journalists. Turkey themselves kills and imprisons journalists.

So why is this particular act such a global event? What makes this event worse than all the other murder and imprisonment of journalists?

Also, why is a global magnitsky act coming up? I thought that was only for Russia. Is this some kind of law that divests investment from any country that engages in human rights abuses?

2

It’s a Turkish journalist. One regional power, Saudi Arabia, killed a journalist from another regional power, Turkey. It happened at a time when both have been flexing their muscles regionally and there’s been a fair amount of regional uncertainty about security issues. It’s different because of the potential of adding to that ongoing conflict.

The Magnitsky Act passed in 2012 was Russia specific. In 2016 the Global Magnitsky Act was passed applying the same type of standards globally. It enables a bit more than mere divesture. From Wiki

3

Jamal Khashoggi was a Saudi journalist. However, at the time, he was living in exile in Turkey.

The big deal is that, allegedly, Saudi Arabia secretly sent a hit team into a foreign country, Turkey, to kill a legal resident of Turkey. It’s not quite at the level of the GRU allegedly sending a hit team to the UK to kill Sergei Skripal, but it’s not far off.

Also, Khashoggi had written for or worked with a number of media organizations, including the BBC and the Washington Post. He wasn’t just a local journalist working exclusively for local media who was (allegedly) killed by his local government. He was an internationally known and respected journalist who had worked with or for various foreign media organizations, who was (allegedly) killed on foreign soil by a special-purpose hit team.

4

Um. Murder is wrong.

5

Just for the record, it’s also a big deal when Putin has journalists murdered. It’s just that no one can really do anything about it.

6

He was a resident of the U.S. living in the Washington, D.C. area and had significant connections with other Washington journalists.

7

And Trump is embracing the spirit of the whole thing

A good warning to those who publish fake news, or some such bullshit.

8

I agree. I just didn’t understand why this particular murder is getting so much airtime while other murders do not.

Turkey kills and imprisons journalists too, so them making a big deal out of this isn’t making sense.

9

Keep in mind that both Turkey and Saudi Arabia are US allies. One of them (Turkey) can even invoke Article Five in the event of a war. We rely on both Turkey and Saudi Arabia for a variety of reasons, including resources, geography, and countering hostile competitors.

Let’s assume the worst case scenario: Demarches, mutual hostility, a breakdown in diplomacy, etc etc. If America had to choose between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the consequences could be catastrophic. Especially so when you consider that people like Russia, Iran, and Syria would happily exploit any opportunity to divide the US from her allies.

10

Honestly I think it’s because it’s more dramatically mysterious. Guy goes into a building, on video, and never leaves.

11

And the killing occurred in a Saudi consular office on foreign territory, and the killers may have used diplomatic cover to fly in and out of Turkey.

That alone is a massively blatant abuse of diplomatic credentials, let alone the extrajudicial killing of a critic.

12

While technically their consulate is their territory they basically sent a hit team to a foreign country to murder a journalist.
He was a Saudi citizen, US resident, & about to have a Turkish bride, which is why he went to the consulate - to get marriage paperwork.

He used to be ‘tight’ with the ruling party but had some falling out as he was recently critical of them. There had been multiple offers to get him to come back home, supposedly to a new job there. That could be seen as a payoff - take this cushy job & don’t say anything negative; however, he rightly saw them for what they really were, attempts to get him back home to kill him.

13

Putin usually has the decency to murder folks on his turf. Sending a hit squad to a foreign country to murder an innocent man takes it to a new level.

14

Thanks. My first exposure was on the lines of the potential consequences between Turkey and Saudi Arabia with details of the killing itself assumed to already be known by the reader. I didn’t and didn’t bother.

15

He’s poisoned folks in the UK too.

16

I thought this was reasonably common. I’ve read stories about both Iraq under Saddam and North Korea doing this.

17

What part of “Putin does it, too” did you miss?

18

Khashoggi was a Saudi citizen with Turkish roots, self-exiled in fear of arrest, legally living in the US with a green card.

He was engaged to a Turkish woman and needed paperwork from the Saudi government to be allowed to marry in Turkey. He disappeared when going to the consulate to pick up the paperwork.

He contributed frequently to the Washington Post. Imagine if he had visited the Saudi consulate in DC - would he have disappeared?

If that is not enough to make it a big issue, it is reported that the suspect team of 15 Saudis who flew into Turkey brought a bone saw to help them get him out the consulate. Nothing like a little gore to trigger interesting rumors and news coverage.

19

And if the Turkish intel is accurate, he wasn’t only killed, but hacked up with a bone saw.

20

Well multiple little diplomatic pouches are a lot less conspicuous than one large, body-bag shaped one.