US likely to name Saudi embassy street after Khashoggi

ANKARA

A member of the Washington, D.C. City Council introduced a legislation on Thursday that proposes to name a street in the US capital after the slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto, the youngest in the district's history, introduced the "Jamal Khashoggi Way Designation Act of 2021," although the initiative to name a street after the former columnist for the Washington Post had started in 2018.

The act proposes the location on New Hampshire Avenue, between Virginia Avenue and F Street in Northwest, to be named after Khashoggi, who was a critic of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman.

The proposed "Jamal Khashoggi Way" is located right in front of the Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C. 


"Everyone who visits the Saudi embassy will be reminded of Mr. Khashoggi's courage [...] Through his journalism, Jamal Khashoggi was a fierce advocate for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law," Pinto said in a statement.

"Journalists around the world and here in America face similar dangers every day, and we must never let those who seek to intimidate them succeed, because when journalism is under assault, our freedom and democracy are under assault," she added. 


Khashoggi, 59, was killed and dismembered on Oct. 2, 2018 by a group of Saudi operatives shortly after he entered the country's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Activists and human rights groups have said the murder was premeditated and carried out upon the directives of Mohammed bin Salman, a charge Riyadh denies.

Turkish prosecutors and leaders have pressed for a full accounting of the murder and for its perpetrators to face justice.