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FACT CHECK: Saudi Arabia's changing narrative over journalist's murder

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Agence France-Presse

<p>Saudi authorities first insisted the journalist Jamal Khashoggi came out of their Istanbul consulate alive. Now they say he was the victim of a premeditated murder.</p><p>Here is a summary of Riyadh&#x27;s comments since the Saudi dissident and Washington Post contributor disappeared on October 2, sparking a major international crisis.</p><div><strong>- Disappeared, not inside -</strong></div><p>On October 4, after an initial period of silence, Riyadh says the journalist disappeared &quot;after he left the consulate building&quot;.</p><p>The following day, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman tells Bloomberg that Khashoggi is not inside the consulate.</p><div><strong>- &#x27;Baseless lies&#x27; -</strong></div><p>On October 13, Saudi Arabia&#x27;s interior minister rejects accusations that Khashoggi was ordered murdered by a hit squad inside the consulate, dismissing them as &quot;lies and baseless allegations&quot;.</p><div><strong>- Dies in a &#x27;brawl&#x27; -</strong></div><p>Overnight from October 19-20, Saudi Arabia admits the journalist was killed inside the consulate.</p><p>&quot;Discussions that took place between him and the persons who met him... led to a brawl and a fistfight with the citizen, Jamal Khashoggi, which led to his death,&quot; Saudi Attorney General Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb says in a statement.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/10/20/18/saudi-arabia-says-journalist-khashoggi-died-after-fight-in-consulate">Saudi Arabia says journalist Khashoggi died after fight in consulate</a></li></ul><div><strong>- &#x27;Chokehold&#x27; -</strong></div><p>However, Ali Shihabi, the head of the Arabia Foundation think tank, which is said to be close to the government, contradicts the Saudi narrative. Citing a senior Saudi source, he says &quot;Khashoggi died from a chokehold during a physical altercation, not a fist fight&quot;.</p><div><strong>- &#x27;Murder... tremendous mistake&#x27; -</strong></div><p>Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir says in an interview with Fox News on October 21 that the operation was not ordered by the crown prince.</p><p>&quot;We are determined to punish those who are responsible for this murder,&quot; he says.</p><p>&quot;The individuals who did this, did this outside the scope of their authority. There obviously was a tremendous mistake made, and what compounded the mistake was the attempt to try to cover up.&quot;</p><p>&quot;We don&#x27;t know, in terms of details, how,&quot; he added. &quot;We don&#x27;t know where the body is.&quot;</p><div><strong>- &#x27;Repulsive incident&#x27; -</strong></div><p>In his first public comments on the affair, more than three weeks after Khashoggi&#x27;s disappearance, the crown prince on October 24 denounces the murder.</p><p>He calls it a &quot;repulsive incident&quot;, insisting the kingdom is cooperating with Turkey and that &quot;justice will prevail&quot;.</p><p>&quot;Many are trying to exploit the Khashoggi affair to drive a wedge between Saudi Arabia and Turkey... they will not succeed,&quot; he says.</p><div><strong>- &#x27;Premeditated&#x27; -</strong></div><p>On October 25, Saudi Arabia&#x27;s public prosector says the murder was &quot;premeditated&quot;, based on information supplied by Turkey.</p><p>In a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, he says the public prosecution &quot;continues its investigation&quot;.</p>

<p>Saudi authorities first insisted the journalist Jamal Khashoggi came out of their Istanbul consulate alive. Now they say he was the victim of a premeditated murder.<br /> </p>

Saudi authorities first insisted the journalist Jamal Khashoggi came out of their Istanbul consulate alive. Now they say he was the victim of a premeditated murder.