As he commented on the latest developments on Jamal Khashoggi’s case, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a “final warning” on Syria on Friday.
Speaking to a group of provincial leaders of his AK Party in Ankara on Friday, Erdogan said that “we will eliminate threat towards Turkey” and will not allow activities that endanger the country’s borders.
The Turkish president stated that the east of the Euphrates would be cleared of terrorists and “returned to its rightful owners,” adding that Ankara would focus its attention on Syrian Kurdish fighters east of the river, rather than the Manbij area.
Erdogan further stated that the agreement between Ankara and Moscow on Syria’s Idlib was being fulfilled without any trouble.
“We, together with Russia and Iran have developed a formula that takes into account the interests of all parties. In Geneva, we failed to solve these problems, and we made a decision on a Syrian settlement in Astana. Then there was Sochi, Tehran, where we reached a logical conclusion. As a result, there are no problems with Idlib now,” Erdogan said speaking in Ankara.
Khashoggi Case
Addressing the murder of The Washington Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi, at the Saudi Consulate General in Istanbul, the Turkish President stated that Riyadh should disclose the whereabouts of the journalist’s body and said that Ankara had more evidence on the case.
He also announced that Saudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor will visit Istanbul on Sunday for talks with Turkish authorities as part of the investigation into the murder
“They’ve arrested 18 people, and they know exactly who had killed the journalist. That is what should be announced. It is also necessary to name the local cooperator. Who gave the order to send a 15-member team? And where is the body? It needs to be explained. On Sunday, the Prosecutor-General of Saudi Arabia will arrive in Turkey and meet with our prosecutors,” he said.
He dismissed the initial statements by Riyadh, which suggested that Khashoggi left the consular premises in Istanbul, as “ridiculous and childish.”
“How could he leave when his bride was waiting for him in front of the door? Such statements should not be made by a big and serious state,” the Turkish president added.
He called on the Saudi side to extradite the perpetrators of the killing to try them in Istanbul.
Source: Sputnik
