The brutual killing of Saudi Arabia journalist Jamal Khashoggi reportedly inside the Saudi consulate on Oct. 2 in Istanbul has badly exposed its ruler. Despite the tall claims of initiating reforms under crown prince and de facto ruler Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS), this incident proves that kingdom continues to ruthlessly target anyone found going against its rulers. Khashoggi’s only mistake was that he insisted on publicly confronting a crown prince who wanted only congratulations for allowing women to drive and movie theaters to open. He was a journalist and commentator who fled the kingdom after finding himself on MBS’s bad side and ultimately paid for his life.
The grisly crime holds the power to transform the crown prince into a pariah, and perhaps even upend the Middle East order he had made his personal project, with the help of a flattered US President Donald Trump. The killing inside a diplomatic compound is horrific after all, if diplomatic compounds are associated with anything beyond diplomacy, it is refuge. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, for example, has been under the protection of Ecuador inside its London embassy since 2012. This incident should be a wake up call for western world. In their relentless pursuit to target Iran, the west has given too much power to Saudi, though it is alleged to be the biggest funder of Islamic terrorists worldwide. The Wahhabism sect promoted by Saudi ruler is considered to be the root of terrorism all over the world. But the West continues to ignore this fact and has always warmed up to its dictator kings. Now that crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman is being alleged of involved in killing of Jamal Khashoggi, will the western world exhibit courage to punish Saudi Arabia and stand up for democratic values it holds dear? Or will it continue to back him in order to neutralize Iran. The choice is for the west to make.