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An activist holds a sign and a picture of the missing Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, at a protest calling for sanctions against Saudi Arabia and protesting his disappearance in front of the White House in Washington, Oct. 19. 2018. (Leah Millis / Reuters)
Erin Cunningham
A reporter from the Middle East covering Iran, Turkey, Syria and the wider region
ISTANBUL – The surveillance video recorded by the Turkish security forces would show a member of the team suspected of killing Jamal Khashoggi, wearing the clothes of the murdered journalist, the day the investigators said that He had been murdered.
The video – obtained and broadcast by CNN on Monday – appears to confirm reports that Saudi agents who allegedly killed Khashoggi allegedly used a double body in an attempt at concealment.
Turkish investigators have claimed that 15 Saudi agents murdered Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who had been living in exile in the United States, at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul shortly after entering on Oct. 2.
Saudi Arabia said Saturday that Khashoggi, 59, had died accidentally at the consulate as a result of an altercation with a team sent to negotiate his return. But the Saudi authorities have so far refused to answer questions about what happened to Khashoggi's remains, which has led to an already widespread condemnation of the murder.
The images released on Monday – which appeared to show Mustafa al-Madani, 57, and an accomplice – question the Saudi government's explanations of what happened at the consulate and in the hours following Khashoggi's death. .
A spokesman for the ruling Justice and Development Party in Turkey said on Monday that the killing of Khashoggi was "complicated" and "monstrously planned".
In a series of CCTV camera clips, Madani is depicted wearing gray pants, a light shirt and a black jacket worn by Khashoggi before entering the mission. He also seems to wear glasses and a false beard as part of the disguise.
According to information kept by the Department of Homeland Security, Madani, suspected of working for Saudi intelligence, went to New York shortly before the planned arrival of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the US. part of his American tour this spring. Four users of a popular caller ID app in the Arab world said that Madani was working in intelligence, and another described him as working at the headquarters of the kingdom's main intelligence agency.
In the video, Madani arrives at the consulate of Saudi Arabia in the Levent district in Istanbul around 11 am, dressed in black and white sneakers and a blue plaid shirt, about two hours before. arrival of Khashoggi. Khashoggi went to the consulate that day to run an administrative race after consulate officials told him that the documents needed for his wedding would be ready on October 2, according to his family and friends.
Madani leaves the consulate about four hours later, wearing Khashoggi's clothes, except for his shoes. He is accompanied by another man wearing a black hoodie and carrying a white plastic bag. The pictures show that the two suspects are taking a taxi to Istanbul's Sultan Ahmet district, where they enter a bathroom. Madani comes out of the bathroom wearing the same checkered shirt that he wore when he arrived at the consulate and the two men have the plastic bag containing Khashoggi's clothes, according to the Turkish authorities, CNN reported. .
Later, we see them laughing as they approach an entrance to the Movenpick hotel.
The video was released as Turkish prosecutors prepared Monday to hear further testimony from at least five Saudi consulate employees, local media reports said. Investigators have reportedly interrogated 20 employees, including the driver of the consul general, according to the private Turkish TV channel NTV. It was unclear whether any of the workers was a direct witness of the incident.
The Turkish state broadcaster, TRT, also reported that the authorities had discovered an abandoned vehicle that they said belonged to the Saudi consulate. It was located in a private car park about 10 miles from the consulate grounds.
[Inside the Saudis’ Washington influence machine]
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that he will unveil the details of the investigation on Tuesday, even as Saudi officials sought to ward off growing criticism of the killing.
"The incident will be fully revealed," Erdogan said, according to the semi-official Anadolu news agency.
The office of the Turkish presidency said Monday morning that Erdogan and President Trump had spoken over the phone the night before and had agreed to "settle Jamal Khashoggi's incident".
A White House official confirmed that the call had taken place. President Trump and his administration highlighted Saudi Arabia's status as a key ally of the United States.
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