Japan's SoftBank Group Corp Chief Executive Masayoshi Son attends a news conference in Tokyo, Japan, November 5, 2018. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

TOKYO (Reuters) - SoftBank Group Corp 9984.T CEO Masayoshi Son condemned the killing of a journalist by Saudi security forces, but defended the firm's financial ties with Saudi Arabia, saying SoftBank will continue carrying out its responsibility to that country's citizens.

“It is true that a horrible incident happened. On the other hand, we have a responsibility towards the Saudi people, and we must carry out our responsibility rather than turn our backs on them,” Son said on Monday.

Son was presenting SoftBank’s June-September earnings results, appearing before reporters for the first time since Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist critical of the Saudi state, was murdered early last month in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul