President Donald Trump has sent Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Saudi Arabia after allegations that the Saudis arranged the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Khashoggi, who fled Saudi Arabia in September of 2017, entered the Saudi embassy in Turkey on October 2nd, and never exited.
Questions immediately surfaced following his disappearance. Claims have been made by the Turks that before he entered the embassy, Khashoggi’s Apple Watch began recording and uploading to the cloud, allegedly recording his interrogation, torture, and murder. Other sources dispute that it would even be possible such recordings to be transmitted to the internet from the embassy.
At the request of @POTUS Trump, @SecPompeo will travel to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia today. The President has called for a prompt and open investigation into the disappearance of @WashingtonPost journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
— Heather Nauert (@statedeptspox) October 15, 2018
Khashoggi was a critic of the Saudi government, and Crown Price, making him a target of the regime – and as some think, a victim of state murder.
President Trump has said that he personally spoke to Saudi officials “more than once” about Khasoggi’s disappearance, and that they’ve vigorously denied arranging his murder. Obviously, the murder of a journalist isn’t something an alleged ally of the United States is going to confess to, hence the need for further inquiry. Trump also said that if the Saudis are indeed behind Khashoggi’s death, “there will be severe punishment.” Even if Trump doesn’t take action, Congress could retaliate, according to Senator Marco Rubio:
The private sector is already retaliating against Saudi Arabia. An investor conference is being held in the Kingdom later this month, and business leaders including the World Bank’s President, Uber’s chief executive, Richard Branson, and all of CNBC, are boycotting the event. The WWE also planned to host an event in Riyadh, but is now distancing themselves from the nation.
Saudi Arabia is an American ally for one reason and one reason only: oil. Saudi Arabia enforces strict sharia law – putting homosexuals to death, cutting the hands off of thieves, and killing adulterers. They also didn’t abolish slavery until 1962 (and more or less did so in name only), and just started letting women drive. If ISIS had massive oil reserves, would we begin tolerating their barbarity? Obviously not – but that’s exactly what we’re doing with Saudi Arabia.
According to the Energy Information Administration, the US will become a net exporter of oil by 2022. Without oil, will the US have any reason to have a relationship with a literal Islamic State, and State sponsor of terror? Hopefully not.
