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Saudis preparing to admit Jamal Khashoggi died during interrogation, sources say
The Saudis are preparing a report that will acknowledge that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death was the result of an interrogation that went wrong, one that was intended to lead to his abduction from Turkey, according to two sources.
One source says the report will likely conclude that the operation was carried out without clearance and transparency and that those involved will be held responsible.
One of the sources acknowledged that the report is still being prepared and cautioned that things could change.
The Washington Post columnist was last seen in public when he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in Turkey on October 2. Previously, Saudi authorities had maintained Khashoggi left the consulate the same afternoon of his visit, but provided no evidence to support the claim.
Saudi Arabia could hike oil prices over the Khashoggi case. Here's why it would backfire
Saudi Arabia's not-so-veiled threat issued in a government statement Sunday emphasized its "vital role in the global economy" and that any action taken upon it will be met with "greater action". But as oil ticks upward, a look at history and geopolitics suggests that while a Saudi-driven oil price spike would bring pain for much of the world, it would ultimately backfire on itself.
"If this is something the Saudis were allowed to do, they'd be really shooting themselves in the foot," Warren Patterson, commodities analyst at ING, told CNBC's Squawk Box Europe on Tuesday. "In the short to medium term we'll definitely see an incremental amount of demand destruction, but the bigger issue is in the longer term."
Any action in withholding oil from the market, he said, "would only quicken the pace of energy transition."
Previously: Turkey Says that a Missing Critic of the Saudi Government was Killed in Saudi Consulate in Istanbul
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @12:48AM (28 children)
Saudi Arabia is acting like the US and UK. That cannot be allowed. They can't just go into some foreign country, and liquidate some person they don't like! Next, they'll be flying drones over Washington!
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday October 17 2018, @12:58AM (13 children)
When was the last time the US or UK carried out an assassination this brazen on foreign soil? (Drone strikes don't count!)
The Bin Laden raid comes to mind. But Bin Laden wasn't a Washington Post columnist, and was in hiding.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:29AM (1 child)
Drone strikes don't count? Why not? Those are pretty damned brazen.
Since you seem to unaware of crimes committed by the US and/or US operatives, you might start with the wiki page on black ops. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_operation [wikipedia.org]
Then you might recall the Blackwater mercenaries, who carried out a lot of US missions that were too "sensitive" to commit troops directly. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackwater:_The_Rise_of_the_World%27s_Most_Powerful_Mercenary_Army [wikipedia.org]
Bear in mind that a successful mission never made the news. If clandestine operations are reported, then they have failed to some degree, or maybe even completely.
I was having one of those brain farts, finally remembered the term I want: rendition. First three links after putting that word into a search:
http://oilempire.us/rendition.html [oilempire.us]
https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/05/08/a-brief-history-of-american-torture/ [counterpunch.org]
https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/12/09/usa-and-torture-history-hypocrisy [hrw.org]
Here, you may be tempted to complain that the US plays by certain rules, or something. That our targets are suspected of terrorism, or something. Or, that our targets are comatants, or something. Complain away.
The fact remains that we commit acts similar to what Saudi Arabia is accused of in this instance.
You may also complain that Saudi Arabia and/or some other country doesn't play this game by our rules, which would be hilarious. If a con man in the street, or a huckster at a bar, bets you that he can do $impossible feat, do you take his bet? Derp! Of course you don't! His game, his rules, he wins no matter what. Ditto in the global geopolitical scene. If we write the rules, and everyone agrees to play by our rules, we are certain to win.
Hence, we see China playing our game, BY THEIR OWN RULES.
Getting off track here. Do your own search, and you'll find plenty of renditions in our history.
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:38AM
All too commonly our combatants are wedding guests
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 4, Informative) by PartTimeZombie on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:32AM (4 children)
Why don't drone strikes count? Is it because a drone can kill lots of people at a wedding?
Hey, whats 63 deaths between friends? [wikipedia.org]
I mean, sometimes the bride cops it. Along with 46 of her friends and family. [wikipedia.org]
Here's another wedding hit by drones. [aljazeera.com]
Going to a wedding can be dangerous for some people. I am not sure why these dead people don't count, but a journalist does.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:49AM (3 children)
A drone strike isn't on the foreign soil, duh!
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(Score: 3, Touché) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:33AM (2 children)
You're losing it, or at least you've failed to communicate anything meaningful with that post. Are you suggesting that the US only launches drone strikes on it's own soil? In that respect, the SA incident has more "morality" than our drone strikes, because the murder took place within an SA embassy. It is recognized that an embassy is sovereign soil of the nation occupying that embassy.
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 3, Informative) by c0lo on Wednesday October 17 2018, @08:36AM (1 child)
You are more missing the pedantic point that a drone is usually airborne when it strikes.
Technically, it makes it not on a foreign soils, but in a foreign air-space.
(grin)
https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @03:16PM
*rolleyes*
It's where the bodies fall that counts, I think. When blown to hell, the bodies tend to land in mideastern nations.
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Fluffeh on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:44AM (1 child)
At least they knocked off one of their own citizens. On the other hand... we... well... anyone we don't like is fair game apparently.
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Wednesday October 17 2018, @06:14AM
*for the US, UK, Israel, probably many others..
FTFY
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 2) by DavePolaschek on Wednesday October 17 2018, @12:57PM
I feel dirty citing Buzzfeed, but this was in my twitter feed this morning.
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/aramroston/mercenaries-assassination-us-yemen-uae-spear-golan-dahlan [buzzfeednews.com]
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:09PM (2 children)
Additionally, Bin Laden wasn't killed merely for his opinions.
For some odd reason all scientific instruments searching for intelligent life are pointed away from Earth.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:33PM
His opinions on American imperialism were 2strong! :))))
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:26PM
He was killed either in a completely animalistic act of revenge, or good politics, or because he knew too much about US covert activities. Had all 3 of those things not been true, we'd have wanted to interrogate him to get whatever information we could.
"Think of how stupid the average person is. Then realize half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:17AM (12 children)
Not seeing anyone else luring innocent people into a safe space for paperwork, then those selfsame people leave feet first, in pieces, not under their own power.
It was a once in a lifetime experience. Which means I'll never do it again.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:45AM (11 children)
scroll up a wee bit, see my response to takyon
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Snotnose on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:19AM (10 children)
Understood. IMHO, when a drone kills a possible terrorist it creates 2-3 more. Kinda like the reaction Oppenheimer et al created some 80 years ago but with people, not atoms.
I don't understand drone strikes. From what I hear for every terrorist we kill we also kill 2-3 innocent civilians. That's not counting the dude attending a wedding where we kill him, plus the bride/groom, bridesmaids, everyone's family, etc.
How would you feel if, I dunno, Canada, ran drones over us that would spontaneously shoot missiles at random crowds of people and then say "but we killed a dude that posted on Facebook he wanted to kill Canadians"? Even if we could show he was planning to do so, how about the 2-20 innocent civilians killed?
It was a once in a lifetime experience. Which means I'll never do it again.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:26AM (6 children)
We probably wouldn't object if you targeted that Beiber kid. Sacrificing 20 random Americans would be relatively easy in that case.
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 2) by Snotnose on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:44AM (1 child)
I, shit. I'm not sure what to say about that. Except it would be a good thing for humanity in general, long as anyone I cared about wasn't in the blast radius. And as I, and everyone I care about actually tries to make society better, mostly out of staying as far away as possible to the Biebers of the world, odds of anyone I care about being within blast radius of a Bieber Bomb (tm) is minuscule, I guess I have to say Go For it!
It was a once in a lifetime experience. Which means I'll never do it again.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by bzipitidoo on Wednesday October 17 2018, @09:50AM
That's a dangerous line of thought. Whatever the ideal world population is, likely we are above that. If 90% of humanity (chosen at random) dropped dead right now, without any collateral damage, that could be mostly good for the lucky 10% that lived. Sure, important people would be lost, and that would slow progress, but humanity would recover.
Saudi Arabia has been one of the worst offenders when it comes to unrestrained population growth. The Saudi monarchy has pursued a short sighted policy of populist appeasement. Give their people huge handouts. Why not, since they have so much wealth? Now they have a lot of young people with bleak prospects and doubtful futures. America had its Wild West times and regions. That whole "go west young man" was established family pushing the "surplus" away. So many families from the 19th century were huge. Now Saudi Arabia has those kinds of times.
I saw a video that some young Saudis made, of a crazy car stunt. On a long straight stretch of road, they swerved their vehicle so that one side rose up into the air. The driver kept the car balanced on 2 wheels for many minutes and kilometers, driving along at some 100 kph, while the passengers got out some lug wrenches and took the other 2 wheels off, to show that they could. One bump in the road, one bit of debris, one spot of bad traffic, one strong gust of wind from the side, any of that could have knocked the car off balance and resulted in an accident with almost certainly fatalities. Can't very well keep your seatbelts on if you're trying to hang out the window far enough to reach the lug nuts. Then they put the wheels back on and let the car come back down on all 4. Now think of the craziest, most risk loving maniacs you knew in high school. Was there not just one, but a large enough group of them all friends with each other and crazy enough to try a stunt like that? Saudi youth must evidently feel they haven't got much to lose.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @03:32AM (3 children)
I thought he was Canadian.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by dry on Wednesday October 17 2018, @05:53AM (2 children)
We shipped him down there.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @09:05AM (1 child)
Isn't that bioterrorism?
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @03:19PM
Exactly, so we owe the Canucks one.
ICE is having a Pretti Good season.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Arik on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:52AM
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:26PM (1 child)
Canada has drone canoes?
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:07PM
With laser beams.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:27AM
Good to know it meets with your approval. I guess since Khashoggi wasn't right-wing or anti-left enough for your tastes so he's dispensable. Stay classy.