Saudi explanation of Khashoggi’s killing ‘inadequate,’ real transparency needed – Berlin

Top German officials are not satisfied with Saudi Arabia’s explanation for the death of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas condemning the killing on Saturday. “We expect transparency from Saudi Arabia about the circumstances of his death,” they said in a joint statement. “The information available about events in the Istanbul consulate is inadequate.” The journalist vanished during his visit to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey on October 2. Saudi Arabia initially maintained that Khashoggi left the building alive, but it admitted on Friday that the man was actually killed during a “fistfight.” While it remains unclear where the journalist’s body is, multiple media reports suggested that he might have been killed, dismembered and snuck out of the consulate by a high-profile Saudi hit squad.