Turkish court refuses to add US report to Jamal Khashoggi trial as evidence

A Turkish court has refused to accept the recent US intelligence report as evidence that believed that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the operation to "capture or kill" Jamal Khashoggi. According to The Guardian, Khashoggi's fiancee, Hatice Cengiz petitioned the court that is trying 26 Saudi nationals in absentia for the murder to admit the US report as evidence. But the court on Thursday refused to do so and asked Cengiz to file a request with the State prosecutors instead. 

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'Inconclusive report'

The United States intelligence released a report on February 26, which blamed Mohammed bin Salman for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. However, the report received a lot of criticism from the Saudis, who dismissed it as "inconclusive". Supporters of the Saudi Crown Prince argued that the report contains too many vague words such as "probably" and ''highly unlikely''. The four-page report claims that since the Crown Prince is vital in decision-making in the Kingdom, it is likely that the operation was approved by Mohammed bin Salman. 

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However, the Turkish prosecutors believe the whole operation was masterminded by Saudi deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Assiri and Crown Prince's media advisor Saud al-Qahtani. Jamal Khashoggi was murdered inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2017 by a team of hitmen, including some who were members of Mohammed bin Salman's protective detail.

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Saudi Arabia initially claimed that Khashoggi left the consulate alive, but changed its stance after certain evidence came into the light. Saudi Arabia later accepted that Khashoggi was murdered inside the consulate and called it a "rogue operation". Saudi Arabia then arrested five people in connection with the operation and a royal court sentenced them to death in a secret trial. The death sentences were later reduced after Khashoggi's family supposedly "forgave" them. 

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