Hatice Cengiz, the Turkish woman engaged to marry Jamal Khashoggi, the journalist murdered by a hit squad of 15 Saudi Arabian agents after he criticised bin Salman in the Washington Post, said the deal was 'so sad', adding: 'It is a real shame for Newcastle and English football'. She said of the Premier League: 'They shouldn't have let them wash (blood from) their hands with this business. By giving the green light to those linked with
crime, this will kill more people, values and human rights and they should think about that. They should stand with me, and Jamal'.
She added: 'Everyone knows the government [in Saudi Arabia] controls everything. The current Saudi regime has a crown prince who is managing everything in the country. The point is this... how do the players, the fans and the director of Newcastle accept this situation? I am really sad about this point. I guess money is more important than anything in this life.'
Mr Khashoggi had been invited to his country's consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018 for an appointment to pick up documents that would allow him to get married to his Turkish fiancee Ms Cengiz, who had been waiting outside. He never walked out.
A team of 15 Saudi agents had flown to Turkey to intercept Mr Khashoggi inside the consulate. He was drugged, suffocated with a plastic bag and then dismembered with a bone saw by the 15-man Saudi squad. His remains were stuffed into suitcases and have never been found. A UN investigation later found 'credible evidence' linking Khashoggi's death and attempts to cover it up to Prince Bin Salman.