BBC Online :
Turkish officials investigating the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi will search Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul later on Monday, the Turkish foreign ministry says.
Turkish officials believe Mr Khashoggi was murdered in the consulate by Saudi agents nearly two weeks ago, but Riyadh strongly denies this.
Diplomatic pressure is growing on the Saudis to give a fuller explanation.
On Monday, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman ordered an investigation into the case.
“The king has ordered the public prosecutor to open an internal investigation into the Khashoggi matter based on the information from the joint team in Istanbul,” an official quoted by Reuters news agency said.
The official said the prosecutor had been instructed to work quickly.
Last week, Turkey accepted a Saudi proposal to form a joint working group to investigate Mr Khashoggi’s disappearance. The latest moves come as more leading business figures say they will not attend a major investment conference in Riyadh later this month.
The head of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon, is one of the latest high-profile executives to pull out.
Dubbed “Davos in the Desert”, the conference, starting on 23 October, was expected to showcase Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ideas for reform.
The 32-year-old is widely seen as the most influential figure in the kingdom.
While the foreign ministry confirmed to the BBC that a search will be carried out, details have not been revealed. Turkish diplomatic sources said the consulate would be searched by a joint Turkish-Saudi team in the late afternoon or evening.
Saudi Arabia agreed last week to allow Turkish officials to search the building but insisted it would only be a superficial “visual” inspection. Turkey rejected that offer. The Sabah daily newspaper said investigators had wanted to search the building with luminol, a chemical which shows up any traces of blood.
King Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday evening, officials said, and stressed the importance of the two countries working together on the case. Mr Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi government who has written for the Washington Post, was last seen walking into the consulate on 2 October.
Turkish officials investigating the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi will search Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul later on Monday, the Turkish foreign ministry says.
Turkish officials believe Mr Khashoggi was murdered in the consulate by Saudi agents nearly two weeks ago, but Riyadh strongly denies this.
Diplomatic pressure is growing on the Saudis to give a fuller explanation.
On Monday, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman ordered an investigation into the case.
“The king has ordered the public prosecutor to open an internal investigation into the Khashoggi matter based on the information from the joint team in Istanbul,” an official quoted by Reuters news agency said.
The official said the prosecutor had been instructed to work quickly.
Last week, Turkey accepted a Saudi proposal to form a joint working group to investigate Mr Khashoggi’s disappearance. The latest moves come as more leading business figures say they will not attend a major investment conference in Riyadh later this month.
The head of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon, is one of the latest high-profile executives to pull out.
Dubbed “Davos in the Desert”, the conference, starting on 23 October, was expected to showcase Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ideas for reform.
The 32-year-old is widely seen as the most influential figure in the kingdom.
While the foreign ministry confirmed to the BBC that a search will be carried out, details have not been revealed. Turkish diplomatic sources said the consulate would be searched by a joint Turkish-Saudi team in the late afternoon or evening.
Saudi Arabia agreed last week to allow Turkish officials to search the building but insisted it would only be a superficial “visual” inspection. Turkey rejected that offer. The Sabah daily newspaper said investigators had wanted to search the building with luminol, a chemical which shows up any traces of blood.
King Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday evening, officials said, and stressed the importance of the two countries working together on the case. Mr Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi government who has written for the Washington Post, was last seen walking into the consulate on 2 October.
