Turkish President Erdogan has said dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered by Saudis and that he has the evidence to prove it. His statement undermines the Turkish judiciary, writes DW's Hülya Schenk.
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Image: picture alliance/AA
Turkey could have made use of all legal means at its disposal to thoroughly investigate journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death and then go public with the findings. Doing so would have doubly served President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. First, he could have regained some trust from the international community after doing so much to undermine it in recent years. Second, he would have seen Turkey's judiciary, which has become increasingly politicized, restore its standing at home.
But Turkey failed to take advantage of this opportunity. As global attention focused on Turkey in recent days given the suspected murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Erdogan has put himself in the spotlight to further his own agenda. When it comes to the Khashoggi case, his conduct has been neither politically nor legally appropriate.
Erdogan takes the judge's role
The Turkish police and judiciary were still conducting an investigation into the incident and had even had some success. Then Erdogan publicly announced their findings as if he were reading out an indictment or court verdict at a meeting of his own Justice and Development Party (AKP) parliamentary group. He declared he was certain Khashoggi had been murdered in the Saudi consulate, claiming he had reliable evidence to prove this. Erdogan said it had been possible to trace the arrival in and departure from Istanbul of Saudi "teams" responsible for Khashoggi's killing. He added that a Turkish national was complicit in the case and that it was up to Saudi Arabia to carry out a rigorous investigation of the case.
Turkish law reserves such language court rulings — not heads of state. And a Turkish president should certainly refrain from divulging information related to an ongoing investigation. Once again, Erdogan has ignored the separation of powers, politicized the judiciary and diminished its standing.
DW editor Hülya Schenk
Instead, Erdogan should have endeavored to create the right conditions for a truly independent investigation. But his opportunist nature got in the way. He was eager to thwart international criticism directed at the investigation, wanted to regain international trust and strengthen his own position.
Turkey's dilemma
To fully understand Khashoggi's murder, a look at the bigger political picture is needed: Khashoggi was known to sympathize with the Muslim Brotherhood, which Saudi Arabia sees as an existential threat. Turkey, in turn, has close tied to the Brotherhood, but it is also eager not to anger the Saudi monarchy. This complicates the investigation into the journalist's killing and possibly explains why it is moving so slowly.
Legal experts have highlighted that the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT) allows for diplomatic immunity to be revoked and consular staff to be held accountable in extreme circumstances like these. Turkey, however, has not utilized this legal right. Moreover, Turkish authorities turned two blind eyes to the Saudi consul general leaving the country. It is clear that Turkey is attempting to avoid the dilemma of having to irritate either the Muslim Brotherhood or the Saudis.
A death like any other?
The journalist's death is being treated and investigated like any other homicide. Information pointing to political involvement is ignored. Since every lead that could end at the door of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would bring massive problems, no one investigates them. Even though Erdogan has repeatedly demanded Saudi Arabia extradite the 18 suspects it has in custody in connection with the case so they can stand trial in Turkey, he has shied away from a trial whose consequences could extend to the Saudi royal family.
Turkey, therefore, will turn a blind eye to the political dimension of Khashoggi's murder. The assassins will land in the dock while the masterminds walk scot-free. If the international community wants to shed any light on this murder, it will have to take over and establish an independent investigation.
But even that will not change the fact that when it comes to Khashoggi's death, Erdogan has treated the judiciary like a subservient child.
Jamal Khashoggi: A mysterious disappearance and death
Official Saudi statements on the fate of journalist Jamal Khashoggi have changed several times since he disappeared at the Istanbul consulate on October 2. DW traces the most important events in this intricate case.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Martin
Vanishes into thin air
October 2: Prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where he had gone to obtain an official document for his upcoming marriage to his Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz. He never emerged from the building, prompting Cengiz, who waited outside, to raise the alarm.
Image: Reuters TV
Confusion over whereabouts
October 3: Turkish and Saudi officials came up with conflicting reports on Khashoggi's whereabouts. Riyadh said the journalist had left the mission shortly after his work was done. But Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said the journalist was still in the consulate.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/V. Mayo
Murder claims
October 6: Turkish officials said they believed the journalist was likely killed inside the Saudi consulate. The Washington Post, for which Khashoggi wrote, cited unnamed sources to report that Turkish investigators believe a 15-member team "came from Saudi Arabia" to kill the man.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/H. Jamali
Ankara seeks proof
October 8: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia to prove that Khashoggi left its consulate in Istanbul. Turkey also sought permission to search the mission premises. US President Donald Trump voiced concern about the journalist's disappearance.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/T. Kovacs
'Davos in the Desert' hit
October 12: British billionaire Richard Branson halted talks over a $1 billion Saudi investment in his Virgin group's space ventures, citing Khashoggi's case. He also pulled out of an investment conference in Riyadh dubbed the "Davos in the Desert." His move was followed by Uber's Dara Khosrowshahi, JP Morgan's Jamie Dimon and a host of other business leaders.
Image: picture alliance/dpa
Search operation
October 15: Turkish investigators searched the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The search lasted more than eight hours and investigators removed samples from the building, including soil from the consulate garden and a metal door, one official said.
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer
Death after fistfight
October 19: Saudi Arabia finally admitted that Khashoggi died at the consulate. The kingdom's public prosecutor said preliminary investigations showed the journalist was killed in a "fistfight." He added that 18 people had been detained. A Saudi Foreign Ministry official said the country is "investigating the regrettable and painful incident."
Image: Getty Images/C. McGrath
'Grave mistake'
October 21: Saudi Arabia provided yet another account of what happened to Khashoggi. The kingdom's foreign minister admitted the journalist was killed in a "rogue operation," calling it a "huge and grave mistake," but insisted that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had not been aware of the murder. Riyadh said it had no idea where Khashoggi's body was.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/C. Owen
Germany halts arms sales
October 21: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany would put arms exports to Saudi Arabia on hold for the time being, given the unexplained circumstances of Khashoggi's death. Germany is the fourth largest exporter of weapons to Saudi Arabia after the United States, Britain and France.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Sauer
Strangled to death, dissolved in acid
October 31: The Turkish prosecutor concluded that Khashoggi was strangled to death soon after entering the consulate, and was then dismembered. Another Turkish official later claimed the body was dissolved in acid. Turkish President Erdogan said the order to murder the journalist came from "the highest levels" of Saudi Arabia's government.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/M. E. Yildirim
Grilled at the UN
November 5: Saudi Arabia told the United Nations it would prosecute those responsible for Khashoggi's murder. This came as the United States and dozens of other countries raised the journalist's death before the UN Human Rights Council and called for a transparent investigation.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/F. Coffrini
Fiancee in mourning
November 8: Khashoggi's fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, wrote on Twitter that she was "unable to express her sorrow" upon learning that the journalist's body was dissolved with chemicals. "Are these killers and those behind it human beings?" she tweeted.
Image: Reuters/Haberturk
Turkey shares audio recordings
November 10: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reveals that officials from Saudi Arabia, the US, Germany, France and Britain have listened to audio recordings related to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Presidential Press Service
Symbolic funeral prayers
November 16: A symbolic funeral prayer for Khashoggi is held in the courtyard of the Fatih Mosque in Istanbul. Yasin Aktay, advisor to President Erdogan, speaks at the service.
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer
Saudi-owned villas searched
November 26: Turkish forensic police bring the investigation to the Turkish province of Yalova, where sniffer dogs and drones search two Saudi-owned villas in the village Samanli.
Image: Reuters/O . Orsal
100 days since killing
January 10: Amnesty International Turkey members demonstrate outside the Saudi Arabia Consulate in Istanbul, marking 100 day since the killing of Jamal Khashoggi. One woman holds up a street sign which reads "Jamal Khashoggi Street". The organization has called for an international investigation into the case.
Image: Reuters/M. Sezer
Saudi murder trial begins
January 3: The Khashoggi trial begins in Saudi Arabia, where state prosecutors say they will seek the death sentence for five of the eleven suspects. A request for the gathered evidence has been send to Turkish authorities. A date for the second hearing has not yet been set.
Image: picture-alliance/abaca/Depo Photos
UN inquiry team in Turkey
January 28: Agnes Callamard, who is leading the UN probe into the handling of the Khashoggi case, arrives in Ankara where she meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. The human rights expect will stay in the country for the rest of the week to speak with prosecutors and others involved in the case.
