Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said the U.S. “will hold all of those responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi accountable.”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said the U.S. "will hold all of those responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi accountable."
He made the comment on Fox News Sunday after host Chris Wallace asked him if he thinks the Saudi Crown prince lied about Khashoggi's death and if Pompeo now believes the incident was a "premeditated hit by the Saudi royal family against Khashoggi."
Pompeo said in response: "The Saudis have acknowledged that this was a premeditated attack."
"We've begun to hold some officials accountable. We've revoked visas from 16 individuals that we've been able to identify so far that were, in fact, connected to that," Pompeo added.
He then promised to hold people connected to Khashoggi's death responsible "while ensuring ...the strategic relationship between the United States and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
Pompeo's comments come less than two weeks after a Saudi state news agency released a statement by the kingdom's attorney general who, according to CNN, said evidence indicates "suspects in Khashoggi's case premeditated their crime."
Media outlets have pointed out that the admission represents another shift in the Saudi account of what happened after Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, visited the Saudi consulate in Turkey on October 2.
NBC News reports that officials had previously referenced a fist fight, a "rogue operation," and a plan to hold him in a safe house.
