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Senators Open Door to Sanctions in Khashoggi Case

They triggered a law that will force President Donald Trump to investigate the journalist’s disappearance.

Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) sent a letter to President Trump Wednesday triggering a law that will force him to open an investigation into the disappearance of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. According to a press release, the letter also opens up the door for sanctions against those who committed any human-rights violations against Khashoggi. The letter triggered the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, which requires the president to report back to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee within 120 days with his determination on Khashoggi’s situation. He must also decide on whether to impose sanctions on those responsible for his disappearance and suspected murder. Khashoggi entered the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, earlier this month and was not seen exiting the consulate. Saudi Arabia claimed that Khashoggi left soon after he entered the consulate, but Turkish investigators are looking into an alleged 15 man team from Riyadh that arrived and left Istanbul on the same day Khashoggi disappeared. U.S. intelligence reportedly intercepted communications of Saudi officials discussing their desire to capture Khashoggi before he disappeared.

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WaPo Publishes Last Known Photo Of Missing Saudi Reporter