Turkey trial of Saudi suspects in Khashoggi murder begins in absentia

ISTANBUL: Twenty Saudi suspects including two former aides to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman went on trial in absentia in Turkey on Friday, accused of killing journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Khashoggi, 59, was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018 where he had gone to obtain documents for his wedding to Turkish fiancee Hatice Cengiz. The prosecutor has already issued arrest warrants for the suspects who are not in Turkey. Cengiz, who is a complainant in the case, was attending the trial alongside the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Agnes Callamard. Yasin Aktay, a close friend of Khashoggi and advisor to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan´s ruling party, was also in the courtroom.