Trump: Pompeo to meet with Saudi king amid Khashoggi probes

Turkey, Saudi Arabia set to start Khashoggi probe

Members of a committee probing the case of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi met Monday at the Istanbul Security headquarters, sources said.According to the security sources, who refused to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media, the members which include both Turkish and Saudi officials are holding talks.Diplomatic sources told Anadolu Agency earlier on Monday that the start of the joint probe at the Saudi Consulate is imminent.Turkish experts try to crack passwords of Khashoggi’s iPhonesThe investigation of the case of Khashoggi, who has not been seen since entering Saudi Arabia's Istanbul Consulate on Oct. 2, is set to start Monday evening, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.On Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Saudi King Salman spoke on the phone about the case.The phone conversation, according to presidential sources, was to form an investigative committee to probe Khashoggi’s disappearance.Spain calls for urgent investigation into disappearance of Saudi journalistAlso on Oct. 2, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the consulate 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, as several countries -- particularly Turkey, the U.S., and the U.K. -- are pressing for the case to be cleared up as soon as possible.Saudi currency at weakest in two years on Khashoggi caseSaudi King orders public prosecutor to open internal probe into Khashoggi caseTurkey to search Saudi consulate in Istanbul for missing journalist on Monday

Turkish experts try to crack passwords of Khashoggi’s iPhones

Two iPhones belonging to Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi are being looked into by Istanbul police. Khashoggi had handed the phones over to his fiancée Hatice Cengiz prior to entering the Saudi consulate on Oct. 2.Both phones are in the hands of the Department of Anti-Cyber Crime Investigation, but no information has yet been obtained because the passwords have not been able to be cracked.Security forces are continuing their efforts to access Khashoggi’s iCloud account, which is synced with his iPhones.Spain calls for urgent investigation into disappearance of Saudi journalistReports emerged on Saturday that Turkey's investigation into Khashoggi's fate after he entered the Saudi consulate revealed recordings made on his Apple Watch purportedly indicating he was tortured and killed.However, it was not clear whether data from Khashoggi's watch could have been transmitted to his phone outside, or how investigators could have retrieved it without obtaining the watch themselves.Apple Inc. declined to comment on these claims.Saudi currency at weakest in two years on Khashoggi caseTechnology experts say it is highly unlikely the watch could have recorded actions inside the embassy and uploaded them to an iCloud account. Most models of the watch require that it be within 30 to 50 feet (9-15 meters) of the iPhone it is paired with to upload data to Apple's iCloud, they said.Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and columnist for The Washington Post, has gone missing since he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.On that same day 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the building while Khashoggi was also 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 -- are pressing for the case to be cleared up as soon as possible.Saudi King orders public prosecutor to open internal probe into Khashoggi caseTurkey to search Saudi consulate in Istanbul for missing journalist on Monday

Spain calls for urgent investigation into disappearance of Saudi journalist

Spain called on Monday for an urgent investigation into the disappearance of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the government's spokeswoman Isabel Celaa said."Spain clearly joins the concern that other countries have already expressed, particularly the European Union, and demands a transparent and urgent investigation," Celaa said.Saudi Arabia's King Salman on Monday ordered an internal probe into the unexplained disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi as a joint Turkish-Saudi team was set to search the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where he was last seen on Oct. 2.Saudi currency at weakest in two years on Khashoggi caseSaudi King orders public prosecutor to open internal probe into Khashoggi caseTurkey to search Saudi consulate in Istanbul for missing journalist on MondayKuwait says it rejects 'campaign against Saudi Arabia'

Saudi currency at weakest in two years on Khashoggi case

Saudi Arabia's currency fell to its lowest level in two years and its international bond prices slipped on Monday over fears that foreign investment inflows could shrink as Riyadh faces pressure over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Trade in the forward currency market, used by banks to hedge investments, suggested some institutions were protecting themselves against the risk of capital outflows or U.S. sanctions on Riyadh after the disappearance of Khashoggi, a prominent critic of Saudi authorities, in Istanbul.But the market moves were smaller than some bouts of instability in the last several years, indicating investors were not as panicked by the Khashoggi case as they were by a plunge of oil prices that began in 2014.U.S. President Donald Trump threatened "severe punishment" for Riyadh if it turned out that Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Instanbul, as Turkish officials allege. Saudi Arabia has denied this and on Sunday warned it would counter any sanctions with greater ones of its own.Oil prices moved only slightly on Monday as analysts said they doubted Saudi Arabia, the word's biggest exporter of crude, would risk international isolation and damage its own finances by cutting back exports at a time when it is pushing through reforms designed to create jobs and diversify its economy.But Krisjanis Krustins, director in the Middle East and Africa team at credit ratings agency Fitch, said the affair could hurt some parts of the reform programme."If there is any lasting change in investor willingness to engage with Saudi Arabia, it could lead to slower and less complete implementation of some Vision 2030 initiatives, and greater need for Saudi Arabia to use debt and internal resources to finance them," he said.Saudi stocks plunge 7 pct on Khashoggi fallout; biggest drop since 2014Trump says US would be 'punishing itself' if it halts Saudi arms salesTurkey expects Saudi cooperation on case of missing journalist: FMWeak Private SectorThe riyal was quoted at 3.7524 to the U.S. dollar in the spot market early on Monday, its weakest rate since September 2016, Refinitiv data showed.The central bank maintains a peg of 3.75 riyals to the dollar, and usually the currency fluctuates in a range of about 3.7498-3.7503. In November 2015, when oil prices were plunging, the riyal dropped as low as 3.7598.In the forwards market, the dollar rose on Monday as high as 100 points against the riyal, a nine-month high, from 54 points on Friday. In 2016, it briefly rose above 1,000 points.Yields on Saudi Arabia's U.S. dollar bonds climbed, mostly at the long end of the curve; its notes maturing in 2046 were 15 basis points wider.Krustins and other analysts noted that foreign investment flows into Saudi Arabia were already very low because of a weak private sector and uncertainty over regulation; this could limit the impact of any reduction of flows.Media organisations and a growing number of executives, including JP Morgan Chase & Co chief executive Jamie Dimon, have pulled out of a major Riyadh investment conference scheduled for next week, dubbed "Davos in the Desert".The Saudi stock market had tumbled 7.2 percent over the previous two trading days because of the Khashoggi case, but it rebounded 2.0 percent on Monday.Traders said some institutional investors, including foreign ones, were buying stocks at the lows, believing Saudi Arabia's fundamental economic situation was unlikely to change much.But many bankers and analysts said the Khashoggi case had fuelled perceptions of political risk in Saudi Arabia because it was the latest in a series of unexpected incidents over the past three years.During this period Saudi Arabia has launched a war in Yemen, imposed an embargo on Qatar, arrested dozens of top officials and businessmen in a corruption purge, detained women's rights activists and seen tensions with Canada and Germany rise.Jason Tuvey, senior emerging markets economist at London-based Capital Economics, said political developments in Saudi Arabia were becoming an increasingly important economic risk.US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin still plans to attend upcoming Saudi summitSaudi threatens to retaliate against any sanctions over Khashoggi disappearanceUK's Labour says it would stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia

Saudi king orders probe in Khashoggi case, Turkey to search consulate

Saudi Arabia's King Salman on Monday ordered an internal probe into the unexplained disappearance of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi as a joint Turkish-Saudi team was set to search the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where he was last seen on Oct. 2.A Turkish diplomatic source said investigators would inspect the consulate on Monday afternoon, following delays last week when the two countries agreed to work together to find out what happened to Khashoggi, a critic of the Kingdom's policies."The King has ordered the Public Prosecutor to open an internal investigation into the Khashoggi matter based on the info from the joint team in Istanbul," said a Saudi official..Asked when the public prosecutor could make an announcement about the investigation, the official said: "He was instructed to work quickly."Khashoggi, a U.S. resident, disappeared after entering the consulate to get marriage documents. Turkey believes he was murdered and his body removed, while Saudi Arabia has denied the allegations.The case has provoked an international outcry, with U.S. President Donald Trump threatening "severe punishment" if it turns out Khashoggi was killed in the consulate and European allies calling for "a credible investigation" and accountability for those responsible.Saudi Arabia has responded by saying it would retaliate against any pressure or economic sanctions "with greater action", and Arab allies rallied tosupport it, setting up a potential showdown between the global oil superpower and its main Western allies.Investor concernTurkey accepted a Saudi proposal last week to form a joint working group to investigate Khashoggi's disappearance.King Salman and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday evening and stressed the importance of the two countries creating the joint group as part of the probe.Concern over the disappearance has seen a growing number of attendees pull out of a "Davos in the Desert" investment conference set for Oct. 23-25 , which has become the biggest show for investors to promote Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's reform vision.On the same day Khashoggi went missing, 15 other Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the building while Khashoggi was also inside, Turkish police sources said. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.One of them is a forensic expert who has worked at the Saudi Interior Ministry for 20 years, according to a LinkedIn profile. Other names and photos match officers in the Saudi Army and Air Force, as identified by previous Saudi media reports and in one case a Facebook profile.The Washington Post, citing unidentified U.S. and Turkish officials, reported that Turkey had told U.S. officials it has audio and video recordings that prove Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate.It was not clear that U.S. officials had seen the footage or heard the audio, the Post reported, but Turkish officials have described the recordings to them.Turkey to search Saudi consulate in Istanbul for missing journalist on Monday