The killing of a critic like Jamal Khashoggi is something that must “never happen again”, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Tuesday, as he pledged a “thorough and complete” investigation into the journalist’s death.

“I express the commitment [of the government]…to see to it that the investigation is thorough and complete and that the truth is revealed and those responsible will be held to account,” he told reporters after meeting with his Indonesian counterpart in Jakarta.

“And that mechanism and procedures are put in place to ensure that something like this can never happen again.”

US meeting

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin held closed-door talks in Riyadh with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday.

The official Saudi Press Agency said they stressed “the importance of the Saudi-US strategic partnership” in a meeting on the eve of a key investment conference in Riyadh.

Mnuchin is among a wave of Western political leaders who pulled out of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) amid global outrage over the journalist’s murder in Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul consulate.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday he was “not satisfied” with Riyadh’s explanation of how Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, died inside the Saudi consulate.

Mnuchin’s withdrawal from the investment conference came after top financial, trade and foreign officials from Britain, France and Germany also dropped out.

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