Turkey hints at mending ties with Saudi Arabia

ISTANBUL: A Turkish prosecutor on Thursday asked an Istanbul court to haltthe trial of 26 suspects in the murder of Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi andhand the case over to Riyadh.

Turkey is seeking to mend ties with Saudi Arabia to bolster its strugglingeconomy, four years after the gruesome 2018 killing of the dissident Saudijournalist inside Riyadh’s consulate in Istanbul.

The Istanbul court is trying 26 Saudi officials in absentia over themacabre killing but the prosecutor said the trial should be stopped and thecase transferred to Saudi Arabia, at the latter’s request.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said the prosecutor’s request was “terriblenews”. The press rights group urged the Turkish justice ministry to turn itdown.

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Khashoggi’s Turkish fiancee confirmed the Saudi government had asked totake over the case in Istanbul.

“The prosecutor asked, accordingly to the Saudi demand, for the transfer ofthe file to #SaudiArabia and the finalisation of it in #Turkey,” HaticeCengiz tweeted after the hearing on Thursday in Istanbul’s main court. -APP/AFP