Nearly two dozen U.S. senators signed a letter triggering an investigation that could result in sanctions over the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and columnist for the Washington Post.
Khashoggi hasn’t been seen since last week, when he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to obtain documents to marry his Turkish fiancée. His disappearance has sparked a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, with Ankara using local media to blame Riyadh for what they say was the killing of Khashoggi. Saudi officials deny involvement and have expressed their concern about Khashoggi.
Speaking on the disappearance, President Donald Trump on Wednesday vowed to “get to the bottom of this,” calling it “a bad situation” during remarks from the Oval Office.
The group of U.S. senators, which include Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Bob Corker, R-Tenn., both the top ranking members of the Foreign Relations Committee, said Khashoggi’s disappearance suggests he could be a victim of a human-rights violation. Under the Global Magnitsky Act, a U.S. sanctions law, sending a letter to the president about a potential violation with the signatures of senators triggers an investigation.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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