Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi
Turkish investigators are likely to find out what happened to the body of slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi "before long", a senior Turkish official said on Saturday.
The official, who declined to be identified, also told Reuters that Khashoggi's DNA samples were being obtained from Turkey.
Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that Khashoggi had died in a fight inside its Istanbul consulate - Riyadh's first acknowledgement of his death after two weeks of denials that it was involved in his disappearance.
Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed within 15 minutes and his dismembered body parts were packaged, Al Jazeera claimed on Friday."Turkish investigators were able to locate the exact place within the Saudi consulate where Khashoggi was allegedly killed during their search of the building earlier this week," Turkish sources told Al Jazeera.Recordings confirm that Khashoggi was attacked by several people after entering the consulate in Istanbul."The investigators, who used audio recordings of Khashoggi’s alleged murder to guide their search, also confirmed that Salah Muhammad al-Tubaigy, an autopsy expert, began cutting up the 60-year-old's body immediately after he was killed."Lost Saudi journo had urged Arab youth to fight tyrannyA prominent Saudi journalist and intellectual, Khashoggi has remained unaccounted for since Oct. 2, when he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.On the same day of Khashoggi's disappearance, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the consulate while Khashoggi was still inside, according to Turkish police sources. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.Ever since he went missing, speculation has mounted that he was killed by the Saudi authorities, who have yet to provide a convincing explanation for his disappearance.Meanwhile, several countries -- including Turkey, the U.S. and the U.K. -- have continued to press Riyadh for clarification.As Khashoggi crisis grows, Saudi king asserts authority, checks son's powerUK academic calls for Saudi sanctions in Khashoggi caseTurkey has not shared audio recordings with anyone, FM says
Turkish probe locates exact site of Khashoggi killing: Al Jazeera
"We'll find out what happened to the body before long," the senior official said. "The DNA is being procured from within Turkey. It seems there will be no need to ask Saudi Arabia at the moment."
Khashoggi's killers may have dumped his remains in Belgrad Forest adjacent to Istanbul, and at a rural location near the city of Yalova, a 90-kme (55 mile) drive south of Istanbul, officials told Reuters on Thursday.
Investigators were still focused on the Yalova and Belgrad Forest areas, and were looking at CCTV footage from near Belgrad Forest, the senior official said.
Investigators were also still examining traffic records of every car that went in and out of the Saudi Consulate on Oct.2, the day Khashoggi entered the consulate, the senior official said.
So grave is the fallout from the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi that King Salman has felt compelled to intervene, five sources with links to the Saudi royal family said.Last Thursday, Oct. 11, the king dispatched his most trusted aide, Prince Khaled al-Faisal, governor of Mecca, to Istanbul to try to defuse the crisis.World leaders were demanding an explanation and concern was growing in parts of the royal court that the king's son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to whom he has delegated vast powers, was struggling to contain the fallout, the sources said.During Prince Khaled's visit, Turkey and Saudi Arabia agreed to form a joint working group to investigate Khashoggi's disappearance. The king subsequently ordered the Saudi public prosecutor to open an inquiry based on its findings.Airbus Defence and Space chief to skip Saudi investment conference"The selection of Khaled, a senior royal with high status, is telling as he is the king's personal adviser, his right hand man and has had very strong ties and a friendship with (Turkish President) Erdoğan," said a Saudi source with links to government circles.Since the meeting between Prince Khaled and Erdoğan, King Salman has been "asserting himself" in managing the affair, according to a different source, a Saudi businessman who lives abroad but is close to royal circles.Saudi officials did not immediately respond to Reuters questions about the king's involvement in helping to supervise the crisis. A spokesman for Prince Khaled referred Reuters to government representatives in Riyadh.UK academic calls for Saudi sanctions in Khashoggi caseKhashoggi, a U.S. resident and leading critic of Prince Mohammed, vanished after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Turkish officials say they believe the Saudi journalist was murdered there and his body removed, allegations which Saudi Arabia has strongly denied.Initially the king, who has handed the day-to-day running of Saudi Arabia to his son, commonly known as MbS, was unaware of the extent of the crisis, according to two of the sources with knowledge of the Saudi royal court. That was partly because MbS aides had been directing the king to glowing news about the country on Saudi TV channels, the sources said.That changed as the crisis grew.Turkey has not shared audio recordings with anyone, FM says"Even if MbS wanted to keep this away from the king he couldn't because the story about Khashoggi's disappearance was on all the Arab and Saudi TV channels watched by the king," one of the five sources said."The king started asking aides and MbS about it. MbS had to tell him and asked him to intervene when Khashoggi’s case became a global crisis," this source said.Since he acceded to the throne in January 2015, the king has given MbS, his favourite son, increasing authority to run Saudi Arabia. But the king's latest intervention reflects growing disquiet among some members of the royal court about MbS's fitness to govern, the five sources said.MbS, 33, has implemented a series of high-profile social and economic reforms since his father's accession, including ending a ban on women driving and opening cinemas in the conservative kingdom.UK says any response over Khashoggi case would be 'considered'But he has also marginalized senior members of the royal family and consolidated control over Saudi's security and intelligence agencies.His reforms have been accompanied by a crackdown on dissent, a purge of top royals and businessmen on corruption charges, and a costly war in Yemen.Khashoggi's disappearance has further tarnished the crown prince's reputation, deepening questions among Western allies and some Saudis about his leadership."Even if he is his favourite son, the king needs to have a comprehensive view for his survival and the survival of the royal family," said a fourth Saudi source with links to the royal court."In the end it will snowball on all of them."Saudi officials did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.New York museums to stop using Saudi money for programsMISCALCULATIONSaudi Arabia has repeatedly denied any role in Khashoggi's disappearance. But the sources familiar with the royal court said the reaction from the United States, an ally for decades, had contributed to the king's intervention."When the situation got out of control and there was an uproar in the United States, MbS informed his father that there was a problem and that they have to face it," another source with knowledge of the royal court said.The crown prince and his aides had initially thought the crisis would pass but they "miscalculated its repercussions", this source said.Turkish officials have made clear they believe Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate, and two Turkish sources have told Reuters police have audio recordings to back up that assertion.Family of Saudi journalist considers him 'missing'U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican close to President Donald Trump, on Tuesday accused MbS of ordering Khashoggi's murder and called him a "wrecking ball" who is jeopardizing relations with the United States. He did not say what evidence he was basing the allegation on.Trump said on Thursday he presumed Khashoggi was dead but that he still wanted to get to the bottom of what exactly happened. Asked what would be the consequences for Saudi Arabia, Trump said: "Well, it'll have to be very severe. I mean, it's bad, bad stuff. But we'll see what happens."Trump has previously said "rogue killers" may have been responsible and has ruled out cancelling arms deals worth tens of billions of dollars. On Tuesday, Trump said he had spoken with MbS and that the crown prince told him he did not know what had happened in the consulate where Khashoggi went missing.The case poses a dilemma for the United States, as well as Britain and other Western nations. Saudi Arabia is the world's top oil exporter, spends lavishly on Western arms and is an ally in efforts to contain the influence of Iran.Saudi may blame adviser for Khashoggi killing: reportBut in a sign of the damage, a succession of international banking and business chiefs, including IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, JP Morgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon and Ford Chairman Bill Ford, have pulled out of a high-profile investment conference in Saudi Arabia this month.U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday also abandoned plans to attend, as did Britain's trade minister and the French and Dutch finance ministers, putting the event in question.Saudi officials have said they plan to move forward with the conference, scheduled for Oct. 23-25, despite the wave of cancellations.Neither JP Morgan nor Ford would elaborate on the reasons for the decision not to attend and did not comment on whether concerns about the disappearance of Khashoggi were a factor.Lagarde had previously said she was "horrified" by media reports about Khashoggi's disappearance. An IMF spokesperson did not give a reason for her deferring her trip to the Middle East.TAKING CONTROLBefore the king's intervention, Saudi authorities had been striking a defiant tone, threatening on Sunday to retaliate with greater action against the U.S. and others if sanctions are imposed over Khashoggi's disappearance. A Saudi-owned media outlet warned the result would be disruption in Saudi oil production and a sharp rise in world oil prices."Reaction and threats to the possible sanctions of the last 24 hours were still (coming) from the crown prince," the businessman close to royal circles said on Monday. "The king is now holding the file personally ... and the tone is very different."The king has spoken directly with Erdogan and Trump in recent days. Both the king and his son met U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo when he visited Riyadh on Tuesday.King Salman, 82, spent decades as part of the inner circle of the Al Saud dynasty, which long ruled by consensus. In four decades as governor of Riyadh, he earned a reputation as a royal enforcer who punished princes who were out of line.Whether he is willing or able to resume that role in this crisis remains unclear, palace insiders say. One source with links to the royal court said the king was "captivated" by MbS and ultimately would protect him.Still, there is precedent for the king's intervention.He stepped in this year to shelve the planned listing of national oil company Saudi Aramco, the brainchild of MbS and a cornerstone of his economic reforms, three sources with ties to government insiders told Reuters in August. Saudi officials have said the government remains committed to the plans.And when MbS gave the impression last year that Riyadh endorsed the Trump administration’s still nebulous Middle East peace plan, including U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the king made a public correction, reaffirming Riyadh's commitment to the Arab and Muslim identity of the city.Despite these rare instances of pushback, several of the sources close to the royal family said that King Salman had grown increasingly detached from decisions taken by MbS."He has been living in an artificially-created bubble," said one of the sources. Lately, though, the king's advisers have grown frustrated and begun warning him of the risks of leaving the crown prince's power unchecked."The people around him are starting to tell him to wake up to what's happening," the source said.
As Khashoggi crisis grows, Saudi king asserts authority, checks son's power
The international community should introduce diplomatic sanctions against Saudi Arabia over the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, said a prominent UK-based academic and political commentator on Friday.Dr. Daud Abdullah, who is also the director of the Middle East Monitor in London, said: "There is an issue of criminal accountability for those who ordered it [the alleged murder of Khashoggi] and for those who executed it."The Washington Post journalist has disappeared on Oct. 2 after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. He has since been feared dead.Speaking to Sky News channel, Abdullah drew parallels between the alleged murder in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul and the nerve-agent attack in Salisbury, U.K.Turkey has not shared audio recordings with anyone, FM says"There is also a need for diplomatic sanctions the type of which we saw being imposed upon Russia in the Salisbury affair," Abdullah said."It cannot be accepted that we did this in terms of Russia after the poisoning in Salisbury, the violation of British sovereign rights," he said.The Salisbury nerve-agent attack targeted former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal earlier this year.Abdullah said he last saw Khashoggi in a conference in September in London, adding the journalist's self-imposed exile proved his fear of the Saudi authorities as he was an open critic of the Saudi government.U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said, "Unless the miracle of all miracles happens, I would acknowledge that he’s dead."UK says any response over Khashoggi case would be 'considered'Family of Saudi journalist considers him 'missing'Saudi may blame adviser for Khashoggi killing: report
UK academic calls for Saudi sanctions in Khashoggi case
The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia on Friday called for a "transparent" investigation over missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.In a statement, AJI Indonesia called for a "credible and transparent collaborative investigation between Turkey and Saudi Arabia" and "urged global powers to monitor the investigation".AJI Indonesia President Abdul Manan said: “We urgently call for an independent and thorough investigation to provide answers to what happened to our fellow journalist, Khashoggi.""We also demand Saudi Arabia government to explain the disappearance of Khashoggi at its consulate,” he said.Manan urged the global powers to watch the developments of the case closely and pressure Saudi Arabia to cooperate with the investigation.“Anyone involved in Mr. Khashoggi’s disappearance must be held accountable,” he added.Manan also said freedom of the press and expression are "basic rights for all", and all governments should make those principles their key priorities.Video: Indonesian journalists urge clarity on Khashoggi casePompeo tells Erdoğan US willing to aid Khashoggi probeChinese daily slams approach of US over Khashoggi caseThe statement also said: "In Saudi Arabia alone, there are around 25 up to 30 professional and non-professional journalists currently in custody.""Saudi Arabia is ranked 169th out of 180 countries in RSF’s [Reporters Without Borders] 2018 World Press Freedom Index, indicating how poor the country is in treating their journalists," it added.Journalist Khashoggi is missing since he entered Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.On that same day, 15 Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the building while Khashoggi was still inside, Turkish police sources said. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.Saudi authorities have yet to give a clear explanation of Khashoggi’s fate, while several countries -- particularly Turkey, the U.S. and the U.K. -- have expressed their desire that the matter should be elucidated as soon as possible.US senator blasts Trump over Khashoggi caseIsrael using Saudi statements on Khashoggi: OfficialFive Khashoggi suspects linked to crown prince: NY Times
Indonesian journalists urge clarity on Khashoggi case