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from the accidental-kidnapping-and-execution dept.
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 Phoenix666 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @03:44AM (5 children)
Let the Saudis turn off the oil spigots. It would be about the stupidest thing they could do. You know who would make out like bandits? The United States (among others). North Dakota, whose economy has already been juiced by the Bakken Formation, would go totally bananas with the windfall. Second, it would put the American and global transition to EVs on steroids.
And all of that would be because they were stupid and clumsy and in a fit of pique had a guy who was criticizing them murdered and dismembered on foreign soil. Not just any foreign soil, BTW, but the foreign soil of the former regional imperial power that is currently ruled by a guy who dreams of reviving the Ottoman Empire. This gives them a causus belli to do that very thing. I mean, how much of a colossal fuck-up do you have to be bring all that geopolitical and economic calamity down on your head because some meaningless dick insulted you?
When it comes to the Saudis, they have no other play besides oil. What, are they going to continue to fund madrassas that teach wahhabism? Are they going to stop selling us sand? I know, they'll cut off the world supply of burkas, because one surefire way to bring the Christian West and atheist Chinese to their knees is to force them to look upon the unhidden flesh of their women.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by loonycyborg on Wednesday October 17 2018, @10:05AM (3 children)
They also have money they got for selling this oil. It can be used to create a lot of disruption. For example, threats of suspending monetary aid: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/10/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-yemen-children-ban-ki-moon.html [nytimes.com]
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday October 17 2018, @01:55PM (2 children)
I guess. It still seems like a one-shot weapon. Once they've killed the revenue from oil, any other stores of cash will quickly run out. The Saudis don't exactly live frugally.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by loonycyborg on Wednesday October 17 2018, @02:43PM (1 child)
Once their oil runs out they'll switch to solar :P
(Score: 3, Touché) by DannyB on Wednesday October 17 2018, @04:28PM
Or clean coal, which they can buy from the US.
For some odd reason all scientific instruments searching for intelligent life are pointed away from Earth.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday October 17 2018, @06:16PM
Let the Saudis turn off the oil spigots. It would be about the stupidest thing they could do. You know who would make out like bandits? The United States...
Something people aren't really aware of:
The United States is now the largest global crude oil producer [eia.gov]