Moments after the Saudi government admitted that dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi was indeed dead, political commentators began calling BS en masse on the Saudis’ claim that the columnist died inside the consulate in a “fistfight.”

While responding on-air to the news, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer pointed out that “this notion of a fistfight resulting in [Khashoggi’s] death sounds very, very suspicious.”

ADVERTISEMENT

“He is a 60-year-old man surrounded by 15 Saudi nationals, high-ranking Saudi officials who were brought in to deal with him,” Blitzer added. “All of a sudden there’s a fistfight and he winds up dead, that sounds very suspicious to me.”

“The Saudi cover-up begins,” the New York Times‘ Nicholas Kristof observed. “The aim is to obfuscate and protect the Mad Prince by pinning this murder on fall guys. Will Trump join the cover-up? We will soon find out.”

The Saudi cover-up begins. The aim is to obfuscate and protect the Mad Prince by pinning this murder on fall guys. Will Trump join the cover-up? We will soon find out. https://t.co/1LyNuk6dEA — Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

The Times‘ Maggie Haberman pointed out that the Saudis were using “the authoritarian version of the Robert Chambers defense,” referencing the infamous “Preppie Killer” who was found guilty of murdering 18-year-old Jennifer Levin. Chambers, Haberman noted, claimed that “things got out of hand” while having “rough sex” with Levin, who was found naked and slaughtered in New York City’s Central Park in the early hours of a morning in 1986.

The Times‘ reporter linked to a tweet from her colleague Michael Barbaro, who noted that it “does not sound plausible” that Khashoggi died in a struggle following a fistfight.

The authoritarian version of the Robert Chambers defense…basically that “things got out of hand.” https://t.co/PCc3TMvwwO — Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

Check out more responses below:

this jamal khassogi fistfight cover story is so ridiculous it might as well be a mike huckabee tweet — Desus Nice (@desusnice) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

this jamal khassogi fistfight cover story is so ridiculous it might as well be a mike huckabee tweet — Desus Nice (@desusnice) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

Where. Is. Jamal. Khashoggi’s. Body. If he died in a “fistfight” in the consulate in Turkey, as Saudi Arabia claims, his body should be in one piece? And wasn’t there an autopsy expert present? He should know. Forget the bonesaw he brought along for a routine diplomatic visit… — Erin Schrode (@ErinSchrode) October 19, 2018

My question is: how does a fistfight lead to a man being tortured and dismembered? This "explanation" is just insulting and maddening.#JamalKhashoggi #KhashoggiMurder #notafistfight pic.twitter.com/WVXXWYL13T — Matt M (@Matthus8888) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

Hate it when I get in a fistfight and get hacked into pieces with a bone saw pic.twitter.com/FCQFno7k7N — Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) October 19, 2018

Stunning, laughable effort to cover up government orchestrated murder of #JamalKhashoggi as a now downgraded “fistfight” with 15 people. 18 fall guys no less. https://t.co/DdJGVrTPSF — Sarah Leah Whitson (@sarahleah1) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

A "fistfight" where some of the fists just randomly happened to have bone saws in them — David Dayen (@ddayen) October 19, 2018

So a 60-year-old journalist got into a fistfight inside the Saudi consulate with a team of security service goons and just happened to get killed? MBS needs to work on his cover story. This one won’t hunt. https://t.co/GDmquYKHvF — Max Boot (@MaxBoot) October 19, 2018

Who amongst us hasn’t been involved in a fistfight that escalated into finger removal, homicide, dismemberment and a botched cover up? — Eli Clifton (@EliClifton) October 19, 2018

ADVERTISEMENT

Claims that Jamal Khashoggi was merely killed in a “fistfight” with 15 Saudi agents who flew to “meet” him and the notion that such a consequential operation would be executed without orders from the highest levels of the Saudi government are not credible. — Evan McMullin (@EvanMcMullin) October 19, 2018

hate it when i invite a guy to my consulate and he dies after a routine fistfight https://t.co/99hRXfOnlx — sam waldron (@waldron76) October 19, 2018