Turkish investigators enter Saudi Consul's Istanbul residence as part of missing journalist probe
Turkish investigators on Wednesday entered the residence of the Consul General of Saudi Arabia Mohammad al-Otaibi in Istanbul as a part of the probe investigating the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Mohammad al-Otaibi left Turkey on a commercial flight on Tuesday before his residence was expected to be searched by Turkish police, but experts didn’t enter due to claims of the family’s presence.
An 11-member Saudi investigation team arrived at the Saudi consul's Istanbul residence on Wednesday ahead of an expected search by Turkish police in relation to journalist Jamal Khashoggi's disappearance.Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu had said that Turkey hopes to enter the residence on Wednesday.Turkish police were expected to search the residence on Tuesday but officers at the scene said it was called off for the day because Saudi officials were unable to join. 'Turkey serious amid US cleanup of journalist case'Saudi Arabia pays Washington $100M as Pompeo lands in RiyadhPompeo tells Erdoğan US willing to aid Khashoggi probePrince Salman can't quash murder probe: Wasington Post columnTurkey hopes to enter Saudi consul’s residence on Wednesday: FM
Saudi investigation team arrives at consul's Istanbul residence
Khashoggi has long been feared killed at the consulate after he entered the Saudi Consulate building in Istanbul on Oct. 2 and was never seen exiting.
Khashoggi was a U.S. resident who wrote columns for the Washington Post and he was critical of the Saudi government, calling for reforms.
Turkish officials have said they believe the Saudi journalist was murdered and his body removed, which the Saudis have strongly denied.
Turkish police entered the Saudi consulate on Monday for the first time since Khashoggi's disappearance two weeks ago, searching the premises for nine hours.Whitewashing the disappearance and possible killing of a Saudi journalist “won’t be easy,” even for the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, wrote a Washington Post columnist Wednesday.“Putting a lid on a murder investigation won’t be easy, even for the brashly confident crown prince,” wrote Post columnist David Ignatius in "MBS’s rampaging anger will not silence questions about Jamal Khashoggi," a piece harshly critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, called MBS in the piece.Khashoggi, also a columnist for the Washington Post, is feared killed at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul after he entered on Oct. 2 and was never seen exiting.Chinese daily slams approach of US over Khashoggi caseAs the “brave journalist” Khashoggi entered the consulate, he also started a “catastrophic process” which put Salman’s “own future in question,” wrote Ignatius.“Surrounded by yes-men who saw suppressing dissent as part of a media war, and rattled by the reversal of his dreams for economic reform, MBS moved toward the fateful moment when Khashoggi entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul,” he wrote.“The darkening mood inside MBS’s palace in recent months shows a crown prince facing economic pressure and tightening his circle of advisers,” Ignatius added.Turkey hopes to enter Saudi consul’s residence on Wednesday: FMSaud al-Qahtani, Salman’s media advisor, is also increasingly his “consigliere in the kingdom’s battles with foreign adversaries such as Qatar and Iran as well as domestic critics.”“U.S. officials believe that, in addition to seeking dominance in social media, Qahtani and other advisers have helped MBS use the latest and most aggressive hacking techniques against adversaries,” he said, adding that Qahtani urged Saudi to report “enemies of the kingdom” on his Twitter account, which has 1.3 million followers.“MBS’s tight inner circle has helped him push modernization efforts, such as reducing the power of the religious police, allowing women to drive and opening movie theaters and other public entertainment. But his team of palace advisers has often amplified, rather than challenged, the crown prince’s worst impulses,” he said.US senator blasts Trump over Khashoggi caseThe crown prince “went into a funk for several days after learning of Khashoggi’s death before re-emerging on a rampage of anger around what happened and trying to figure out a response," Ignatius said, citing an anonymous “knowledgeable source.”On Monday, Turkish and Saudi officials searched the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul after the start of a joint probe into the disappearance.Saudi authorities have yet to give a clear explanation of what happened to Khashoggi, while several countries -- particularly Turkey, the U.S., and the U.K. -- are pressing for the mystery to be cleared up as soon as possible.Israel using Saudi statements on Khashoggi: OfficialFive Khashoggi suspects linked to crown prince: NY TimesRecordings reveal Khashoggi tortured then dismembered while still alive
Prince Salman can't quash murder probe: Wasington Post column