Oct. 2 (UPI) -- Turkey called on Saudi Arabia Friday -- the second anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi's death -- to extradite suspects accused in the dissident writer's killing to stand trial.
Khashoggi, whose body has not been recovered, was last seen on Oct. 2, 2018, at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Officials say he was killed and dismembered by a group of Saudi operatives shortly after arriving at the consulate, where he went to obtain documents for his planned wedding.
Khashoggi was a well-known dissident Saudi writer who was often critical of the Saudi royal family. He also contributed to The Washington Post.
"Two years ago today, Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi walked into an ambush at Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey," Communications Director Fahrettin Altun tweeted.
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"Unbeknownst to him, someone in Riyadh had dispatched a death squad, including a forensic expert and a body double -- with a bone saw."
A Saudi court sentenced five people to death last year for Khashoggi's death, but they were never identified. The death sentences, however, were overturned last month. Three others were given 24 years in prison and three others were acquitted.
Altun called the Saudi proceedings "a show trial" and said Turkish prosecutors want to bring those involved "to justice."
"We all know Jamal's killers," Altun added in a tweet. "Let's make them pay.
"Send Saudi henchmen to Turkey. Let them appear in a public court with international observers. Cooperate with the criminal investigation in Turkey -- the only investigation that was ever intended to shed light on what happened."
In an op-ed Thursday, Washington Post editor Karen Attiah called for more pressure on Saudi Arabia and blamed the Trump administration for not holding Riyadh accountable.
"Jamal's murder has also been a test case for the rule of law in America's democracy -- and so far we have failed that test," she wrote.
