Germany has said it is stopping arms exports to Saudi Arabia following the killing of Jamal Khashoggi and urged other EU member states to do the same in a sign of the growing diplomatic firestorm over the journalist’s death.
Peter Altmaier, German economics minister, said on Monday that Riyadh’s explanation of the killing had not been satisfactory. “The government is in agreement that we will not approve further arms exports for the moment because we want to know what happened,” he told the broadcaster ZDF.
He also called for a united European stance on the issue. “Only when all European countries agree does that make an impression on the government in Riyadh,” he said.
The furore over Khashoggi’s death grew after Saudi Arabia said late on Friday that he had died in a fist-fight, a claim greeted with near-universal scepticism.
The Turkish government accused Riyadh of murder for the first time publicly on Monday following days of leaks from Ankara about Khashoggi’s fate. “This is a case of abominable murder,” said Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “Shining a light on all aspects of this incident is our goal and our duty. Nothing about this incident will stay secret.”
Mr Erdogan has said he will give “full details” of the incident at a meeting of Turkey’s ruling party on Tuesday — which is also the opening day of a flagship investment conference in Riyadh, the Saudi capital.
Following his promise to lift the lid on what happened, Mr Erdogan spoke by phone with US president Donald Trump, the two governments said. A statement by the Turkish presidency said the two leaders agreed on the importance of “shedding light on all aspects” of what happened to Khashoggi.
In New York, Jared Kushner, Mr Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, made his first public comments about the case. Mr Kushner, who has forged close links with Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, said he had counselled Mohammed bin Salman to be “fully transparent” about what led to Khashoggi’s death.
Mr Trump said on Sunday he was “not satisfied” with Saudi Arabia’s latest explanation. He also said he was considering imposing sanctions on Riyadh, a key foreign policy ally of his administration and a major buyer of US arms.
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