A Turkish news website has released the first quotes from audio tapes purportedly of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi’s last moments before he was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.
“Release my arm! What do you think you are doing?’’ website Haberturk quotes Khashoggi as saying at the consulate’s ‘A unit,’ where the visa department is located, and where seven minutes of the tape are recorded.
“Khashoggi was reportedly met by four people, one of whom grabbed his arm as soon as he entered the consulate,’’ Haberturk said.
The four take Khashoggi to the administrative ‘B unit,’ of the consulate.
Three more people join them here, including one whom Haberturk claims were Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, the alleged leader of the 15-man execution squad.
“One other person is identified as Saudi Consul General Mohammad al-Otaibi.
“Traitor! You will be brought to account, Mutreb is heard shouting,’’ Haberturk noted.
The rest of the audio included what Haberturk describes as verbal fighting, brawling, and torture.
It claimed that 19 phone calls were made to Saudi Arabia from the ‘C unit,’ which housed the consul’s office.
The remains of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and critic of the crown prince, have still not been located.
