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Saudi prosecutors have announced that the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi was planned, state-run media reported on Thursday, reflecting an additional shift in Saudi Arabia's changing narrative on what is arrived at the writer killed by Saudi officials in their consulate in Istanbul.
Saudi Attorney General Saud al-Mojeb said the investigators had concluded that the killing of Khashoggi was a premeditated crime after considering the evidence presented by Turkish officials in a joint investigation, according to a statement issued by the Saudi press agency, the Saudi press agency.
Saudi Arabia first insisted that Khashoggi had left the consulate after visiting the building on 2 October. She then dropped that account for a new one, stating that she had arrested 18 people for her accidental killing in a "hand-to-hand fight".
Many countries have reacted to the version of a brawl involving Khashoggi with skepticism and transparency requirements. Turkey is pressuring Saudi Arabia, its regional rival, to reveal more about the crime.
The seemingly clumsy concealment of the murder was revealed to the world by leaks of information in Turkey, images of security cameras and, finally, Saudi accusations that Khashoggi died at the consulate. The key mysteries to be explained are the suspicions that the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia would have ordered the assassination – even if he had publicly condemned it – and where was the chronicler's body from the Washington Post.
"Jamal Khashoggi's body has still not been found, where is he?" Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Thursday at a press conference with his Palestinian counterpart.
"There is a crime here, but there is also a humanitarian situation, the family wants to know and they want to do their last job," Cavusoglu said, referring to the funeral hopes of the family. # 39; writer.
Turkish authorities have informed visiting CIA chief Gina Haspel of the murder investigation and the evidence available to them, said a Turkish security official who was not allowed to talk to the media, under the guise of anonymity. The manager could not confirm whether Haspel had listened to an alleged audio recording of the murder. The pro-government media in Turkey reported that officials had such a record, but its existence has not been confirmed.
On Thursday, conflicting reports surfaced over whether investigators had searched a well in the Saudi Arabian consulate's garden as part of their investigation.
Investigators have dumped the well and are waiting for the results of a water analysis to determine whether any body parts have been dumped there, according to the pro-government Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak. But Sabah, another pro-government newspaper that has published information on the case, said that Saudi Arabia has still not given permission to the Turkish authorities to proceed with a search.
The Turkish media also released an image of a security camera showing a vehicle belonging to the Saudi consulate "overseeing" a forest in the suburbs of Istanbul before Khashoggi's death. The image, obtained Wednesday by state TV TRT and other media, shows a black car carrying a diplomatic registration plate at the entrance to Belgrade Forest.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saudi officials had made "reconnaissance" trips to the forest as well as to Yalova town a day before Khashoggi's death. Turkish officials told the Associated Press that investigators were investigating the possibility that the journalist's remains were hidden in both locations.
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Torchia reported from Istanbul and Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey.
