Jamal Khashoggi is one of the most controversial journalists in recent years. The boldness of his views and the open expression of his position turned out to be a tragic ending for him.
Early years and personal life
Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi was born on October 13, 1958 in Medina in a very controversial family. His grandmother was the personal physician of King Abdulaziz Al Saud, founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, while the uncle of the future journalist was a famous arms dealer who made a multimillion-dollar fortune in the 1980s. Jamal Khashoggi's cousin is the infamous Dodi al-Fayed, who dated Princess Diana and died with her in Paris in 1997.
Khashoggi received an excellent education. He graduated from one of the best schools in Saudi Arabia, after which he received a BA in Business Administration from Indiana State University (USA) in 1982.
Jamal's first wife was Alaa Nassif. The couple had two sons, Sala and Abdullah, and two daughters, Noah and Razan. All four children were educated in America, and three of them are US citizens. However, after the death of Khashoggi, all of his children were banned from leaving Saudi Arabia. The situation remains in limbo to this day.
Career and political views
Jamal Khashoggi's career began as Regional Manager at Tihama Bookstores, where he worked from 1983 to 1984.
After that, he got a job as a correspondent for the Saudi Gazette, in parallel collaborating with other publications, including:
- Asharq Al-Awsat,
- Al Majalla;
- Al Muslimoon.
In 1991, Jamal was appointed Chief Editor at Al Madina, where he remained until 1999. During this period, he was also a foreign correspondent for countries such as Afghanistan, Algeria, Kuwait, Sudan and other Middle Eastern states. In 1999, Khashoggi was appointed editor-in-chief at Arab News, which he held until 2003.
Already at this time, the journalist allowed himself a rather bold civil position and frank criticism of the governments of both the United States and Saudi Arabia. For example, he argued that his homeland should return to the political climate of the period before 1979, when the authorities limited the harsh traditions of the Wahhabis. First of all, in this case, it was about equal rights for men and women, as well as about freedom of speech, which seemed incredible in the current realities of the country's life. Khashoggi suggested that the Saudis find a compromise between Islam and secularism, similar to what took place in Turkey. He advocated freedom of speech in the Arab press, so that every journalist could express his social position "without fear of immediately ending up behind bars", but such hopes seemed quite utopian.
Relationship with Osama bin Laden
Khashoggi met Osama bin Laden in the early 1980s: at that time, the future leader of Al Qaeda was in Afghanistan, where he led a jihad against the troops of the Soviet Union. Khashoggi interviewed bin Laden several times even before the latter became a key figure in world terrorism. There are audio testimonials in which Jamal Khashoggi persuades Osama bin Laden to give up radical activity and violence. This conversation took place 2 years before the largest terrorist attacks in New York on September 11th.
Khashoggi was one of the few who knew the "human" side of one of the bloodiest terrorists of the last century. Perhaps that is why when the American secret services killed Bin Laden in 2011, the journalist expressed his grief. Grief for a person and regret for what hatred and anger turned him into.
Key views of Jamal Khashoggi
Jamal Khashoggi's political journalism has always caused a wide resonance both among readers and among representatives of the ruling world elite. The Arab journalist was remembered for the following provocative positions:
- Criticism of Donald Trump and US foreign policy;
- The truth about the government of Saudi Arabia, in particular, the revelations about the activities of the country's crown prince, Mohammed Ibn-Salman.
- Criticism of Saudi Arabia on relations with Qatar;
- Condemnation of Saudi Arabia's interference in the internal conflict in Yemen.
Jamal Khashoggi openly expressed his opinion on many other issues, but the confrontation with Muhammad Ibn-Salman turned out to be really destructive for him. According to some reports, it was this fact that caused the tragic events that unfolded at the end of 2018.
Brutal murder
On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi arrived at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Turkey to obtain documents - the journalist intended to remarry. The future wife of Khatizha Cengiz arrived with Jamal, but she was not allowed to go inside. The wait stretched for long hours, and the woman had to simply leave.
Khashoggi never left the consulate: at least, this is confirmed by CCTV cameras. For this reason, the scandalous journalist was reported missing.
Officials from both Turkey and Saudi Arabia were only able to enter the building for an investigation on 15 October. It was the Turkish representatives who quickly found the evidence of the violent death. The Saudi Arabian government continued to stand its ground and argued that Khashoggi still left the consulate alive, but after 2 weeks it still admitted that the man died on the territory of the institution as a result of a conflict and a fight with a group of people for personal reasons. However, this version was also very weak.
After a while, the truth came to light. Jamal Khashoggi was tortured, killed, after which his body was dismembered and destroyed in an unknown way, and this murder was planned in advance.
The bloody crime negatively affected relations between the United States, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, and the details of the investigation are being investigated to this day.
