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A year before Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told an aide he would use a bullet on the journalist if he did not return home and end his criticism of the government, the New York Times reported on Thursday, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/saudi-crown-prince-had-threatened-to-use-bullet-on-khashoggi-nytimes-/4778401.html">VOA</a> reports.
The crown princes comments to a top aide in 2017 were made well before Khashoggi was killed last October in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul, the Times reported, citing current and former U.S. and foreign officials knowledgeable about intelligence reports.
The comments were intercepted by American intelligence agencies, the newspaper reported.
U.S. intelligence analysts have interpreted the bullet comment metaphorically, meaning the crown prince did not necessarily mean to have Khashoggi shot, but they do think it showed his intent to have the journalist killed if he did not return to the kingdom, the Times said.
Riyadh, which initially denied knowledge of Khashoggis disappearance before offering contradictory explanations, has steadfastly insisted the prince was not involved in the killing.
Representatives for the Saudi Embassy in Washington, the CIA and the National Security Agency did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment on the Times story.
U.S. intelligence agencies believe the crown prince ordered an operation to kill Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and one-time royal insider, whose body was dismembered.
The New York Times report was published one day before a congressional deadline for the White House to submit a report on whether the crown prince ordered Khashoggis killing and if it intends to impose sanctions on the de facto ruler.
The United States has imposed sanctions on 17 Saudi officials for their role in the journalists death, but U.S. President Donald Trump has said he stands by the crown prince.
The United Nations human rights investigator looking into Khashoggis murder is on a week-long visit to Turkey and is scheduled to meet Istanbuls chief prosecutor on Thursday.
A U.N.-led inquiry into the Khashoggi killing said on Thursday that evidence pointed to a brutal crime planned and perpetrated by Saudi officials.
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Saudi Crown Prince Had Threatened to Use ‘Bullet’ on Khashoggi: NYTimes

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Jamal Khashoggi’s murder was was planned and carried out by Saudi state officials, said UN Special Rapporteur leading the UN investigation on the journalist&#8217;s killing, Euronews <a href="https://www.euronews.com/2019/02/07/khashoggi-murder-was-planned-and-carried-out-by-saudi-state-officials-says-un-led-enquiry?fromBreakingNews=1">reports</a>.
Khashoggi was the victim of a &#8220;brutal and premeditated killing, planned and perpetrated by officials of the State of Saudi Arabia,” said Agnes Callamard, the UN Special Rapporteur leading the investigation.
The UN expert also noted that Turkey&#8217;s efforts to investigate Khashoggi&#8217;s murder at Saudi Arabia&#8217;s embassy in Istanbul had been &#8220;seriously undermined&#8221;.
“Woefully inadequate time and access was granted to Turkish investigators to conduct a professional and effective crime-scene examination and search required by international standards for investigation,” she said.
Callamard visited Turkey with a team of three experts to investigate the reasons behind the journalist&#8217;s murder.
The team was given access to the &#8220;chilling and gruesome audio material&#8221; obtained by Turkish authorities but hadn&#8217;t had the opportunity to fully investigate it.
The probe is ongoing.
The final report will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in June.
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Khashoggi murder was planned and carried out by Saudi state officials, says UN-led inquiry

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Turkey appears to be increasing pressure on Saudi Arabia over the death of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Riyadh&#8217;s Istanbul consulate, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-stance-on-khashoggi-killing-contrasts-with-criticism-over-media-rights/4691388.html">VOA news</a> reports.
Turkish prosecutors have issued indictments for two Saudis allegedly involved in the killing, while Turkey&#8217;s spy chief, Hakan Fidan, reportedly briefed senior American senators and CIA chief Gina Haspel in a closed-door meeting Thursday on Khashoggi&#8217;s killing. According to the reports, the U.S. lawmakers initiated the meeting.
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&#8220;They (Ankara) think, they can still impress some senators and put some pressure on the (U.S.) administration,&#8221; said Turkish political scientist Cengiz Aktar. &#8220;But as long as the American administration chooses not to touch MBS (Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman), the issue is closed, and (Turkish President Recep Tayyip) Erdogan will be the loser in the mid- and long run as Saudi Arabia is now bitterly opposed to the Turkish regime.&#8221; 
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States will stand by Saudi Arabia even though he acknowledged Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman may have known about the Saudi operation.
Ankara is campaigning to keep the Khashoggi killing on the international agenda through a slow but steady drip of information disseminated to the world&#8217;s media.
On Thursday, Turkish newspapers published images purported to be of Saudi Arabia&#8217;s intelligence chief at the consulate, alleging he was a crucial member in the plot. The journalist had gone to the consulate to collect documents so he could marry his fiancee. Khashoggi, who wrote columns for The Washington Post, was killed after entering the building in early October. 
This past week, Istanbul prosecutors indicted Saudi deputy spy chief Ahmed al-Asiri and Saudi al-Qahtani, both former aides to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in connection with Khashoggi&#8217;s killing.
The indictments may be largely symbolic since Riyadh has refused to extradite anyone allegedly involved in the killing, maintaining that the suspects will face justice in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government has said rogue agents are responsible for Khashoggi&#8217;s death.
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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters at a recent NATO meeting in Brussels his government will not hesitate to seek an international route to achieve justice if its current efforts fail.
Analysts point out Ankara&#8217;s stance on Khashoggi has diverted international attention over Erdogan&#8217;s treatment of domestic journalists.
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&#8220;Erdogan tried hard to make a new image with his stance over this murder,&#8221; said Aktar, who now works with the University of Athens in Greece.
Yet on Friday, the Vienna-based press watchdog, International Press Institute, strongly condemned Turkey&#8217;s media freedom record. 
&#8220;Journalism in Turkey is clearly in crisis, and this is clearly a crisis for Turkey itself,&#8221; said IPI executive member Sandy Bremner at an Istanbul press conference. Bremner went on to say journalists should not be regarded as enemies of the state because they ask difficult questions of the government and the rich and powerful. &#8220;We have seen absolutely continuing evidence of the absolute targeting of journalists, just for doing their jobs,&#8221; added Bremner.
Bremner is part of a delegation that held talks this week with the Turkish government and journalist organizations. The IPI said 162 journalists are in jail, 88 of whom are in pre-trial detention. Of those detentions, 132 occurred after the 2016 failed coup against Erdogan, which led the Turkish leader to impose emergency rule. 
The IPI says since then, journalists have been sentenced to a total of 429 years behind bars, including five life sentences. Seventy newspapers and 41 TV and radio stations have also been shuttered. The government maintains no journalist has been jailed for his or her reporting. Authorities have defended imposing emergency rule as necessary on the grounds that those responsible for the failed coup still pose a threat to democracy. 
However, Barbara Trionfi, the IPI&#8217;s executive director, said one of the most worrying findings of her visit to Turkey was that even with the end of emergency rule this year, there was little sign of improvement.
&#8220;The fact is the situation we have in Turkey today is that the restrictions on journalists&#8217; ability to operate are becoming the normality,&#8221; said Trionfi. &#8220;It&#8217;s not the outcome of a situation that is exceptional, but it is becoming normalized both in legal terms by turning emergency decrees into laws, and because of economic and political reasons that do not allow the existence of alternative voices.&#8221;
Trionfi also underscored they only met with senior Turkish civil servants, in contrast to previous visits when they met with government ministers and Erdogan.
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Turkey’s Stance on Khashoggi Killing Contrasts With Criticism Over Media Rights

CIA Director Gina Haspel will brief U.S. lawmakers Tuesday on the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker<a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/cia-director-haspel-to-brief-lawmakers-on-saudi-journalist-s-murder/4686218.html">, reports VOA News.</a>
The briefing will take place after the CIA was excluded last week when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary James Mattis spoke with senators about the journalist&#8217;s killing.
Khashoggi, a U.S.-based Washington Post contributor who was a strong critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), was murdered in October inside the Saudi consulate in Instanbul, Turkey.
The CIA concluded with &#8220;medium to high confidence&#8221; that his killing was &#8220;probably ordered&#8221; by MBS, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Despite the CIA&#8217;s assessment, President Donald Trump has repeatedly dismissed it, calling it premature. Trump has, however, imposed sanctions on 17 Saudis for their alleged role in the murder.
National Security Advisor John Bolton appeared uninterested last week in an audio recording of the killing that Turkish investigators shared with the U.S. intelligence community.
The Journal and other U.S. media outlets have reported the CIA has evidence that MBS exchanged 11 messages with a close aide who oversaw the murder shortly before and after it took place.
Saudi Arabia maintains the crown prince did not know anything about the murder, which it claims was an accident.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a staunch ally of Trump, supports a Senate rebuke of the Saudi government, despite the Trump administration&#8217;s reluctance to do it.
Graham voted for a resolution last week that would cancel U.S. support for Saudi Arabia&#8217;s involvement in the civil war in Yemen.
Graham wrote in the Journal that &#8220;it is important for Congress to signal that there is no excuse for recent Saudi behavior.&#8221;

CIA Director to Brief Lawmakers on Saudi Journalist’s Murder

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Several U.S. lawmakers broke with President Donald Trump on Sunday, disagreeing with his assessment that it was uncertain whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was involved in the killing of a Saudi dissident journalist inside Riyadh&#8217;s consulate in Istanbul, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/us-lawmakers-split-with-trump-on-khashoggi-killing/4673267.html">VOA news</a> reports.
Congressman Adam Schiff, set to become the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee when Democrats take control of the House in January, told CNN, &#8220;I have been briefed by the CIA and, while I cannot discuss the contents of the briefing in any way, I can say that I think the president is being dishonest with the American people.&#8221;
Schiff said, It causes our standing in the world to plummet, it telegraphs to despots around the world that they can murder people with impunity, and that this president will have their back as long as they praise him.
Trump last week said the U.S. would stand by Saudi Arabia and that he did not know whether the crown prince had knowledge in advance of the killing of Jamal Khashoggi. While living in the U.S., Khashoggi wrote opinion columns for The Washington Post that were critical of Mohammed bin Salman and Riyadh&#8217;s involvement in the long-running Yemen conflict.
&#8220;It could very well be that the crown prince had knowledge of this tragic event maybe he did and maybe he didnt!&#8221; Trump said.
Trump concluded, &#8220;In any case, our relationship is with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They have been a great ally in our very important fight against Iran. The United States intends to remain a steadfast partner of Saudi Arabia to ensure the interests of our country, Israel and all other partners in the region.&#8221;
Saudi Arabia has indicted 11 of its agents in connection with the Khashoggi killing, with five of them facing the death penalty if convicted.
Senator Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, also disputed Trump&#8217;s equivocation on whether the crown prince had knowledgeable of the Khashoggi killing.
&#8220;I disagree with the president&#8217;s assessment,&#8221; Lee told NBC&#8217;s &#8220;Meet the Press.&#8221; &#8220;It&#8217;s inconsistent with the intelligence I&#8217;ve seen,&#8221; which implicates the crown prince.
Human rights factor
Another Republican, Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, said on CNN, &#8220;I do think we need to look into this further.&#8221; She said that while Saudi Arabia is a strategic partner of the U.S., &#8220;We also are a very strong nation when it comes to human rights, when it comes to the rule of law. And if there are indicators that the [crown] prince was involved in this murder, then we need to absolutely consider further action.&#8221;
Ernst said she did not think Trump was exonerating Saudi Arabia, but added, &#8220;I think at such a time when it becomes necessary, the president also needs to speak directly to the Saudis and say enough is enough.&#8221;
Republican Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska, a frequent Trump critic, said on Fox News, &#8220;Making the realist case (about the need for a U.S.-Saudi alliance) is a different thing than being so weak that we failed to tell the truth.&#8221; He said Mohammed bin Salman &#8220;contributed to murdering somebody abroad and it is not strength to sort of mumble past that. Strength is telling the truth even when it&#8217;s hard.&#8221;
Numerous U.S. lawmakers have said they intend to push for U.S. sanctions against Saudi Arabia because of Khashoggi&#8217;s killing. Trump, in his statement last week, said, &#8220;I will consider whatever ideas are presented to me, but only if they are consistent with the absolute security and safety of America.&#8221;
He said, &#8220;After the United States, Saudi Arabia is the largest oil producing nation in the world. They have worked closely with us and have been very responsive to my requests to keeping oil prices at reasonable levels so important for the world. As president of the United States I intend to ensure that, in a very dangerous world, America is pursuing its national interests and vigorously contesting countries that wish to do us harm. Very simply it is called America First!&#8221;
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US Lawmakers Split With Trump on Khashoggi Killing

A senior Saudi prince cast doubt upon the reported CIA finding that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul last month, saying the agency could not be counted on to reach a credible conclusion, <a href="https://www.euronews.com/2018/11/24/senior-saudi-prince-says-cia-cannot-be-trusted-on-khashoggi-conclusion">Euronews</a> reports.
&#8220;The CIA is not necessarily the highest standard of veracity or accuracy in assessing situations. The examples of that are multitude,&#8221; Prince Turki al-Faisal, a senior member of the royal family, told journalists in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
The prince, a former Saudi intelligence chief who has also served as ambassador to the United States, said the agency&#8217;s conclusion that Iraq possessed chemical weapons before the U.S. invasion in 2003 showed it could be unreliable.
&#8220;That was the most glaring of inaccurate and wrong assessments, which led to a full-scale war with thousands being killed,&#8221; he said, speaking at an event hosted by the New York-based Beirut Institute.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t see why the CIA is not on trial in the United States. This is my answer to their assessment of who is guilty and who is not and who did what in the consulate in Istanbul.&#8221;
The CIA has concluded that Prince Mohammed ordered the operation to kill Khashoggi, as first reported by the Washington Post, and briefed other parts of the U.S. government on its findings, sources told Reuters last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump has disputed that the agency reached a conclusion on the murder, saying instead &#8220;they have feelings certain ways.&#8221;
A Turkish newspaper also reported on Thursday that CIA director Gina Haspel signalled to Turkish officials that the agency had a recording of a call in which the crown prince gave instructions to &#8220;silence&#8221; the journalist.
Khashoggi was killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2 in an operation that Turkish authorities have said was ordered by the highest level of Saudi leadership, prompting the kingdom&#8217;s biggest political crisis in a generation.
After offering numerous contradictory explanations, Riyadh said Khashoggi was killed and his body dismembered after negotiations to persuade him to return to Saudi Arabia failed.
The kingdom&#8217;s public prosecutor is seeking the death penalty for five suspects charged in the murder, but has said Prince Mohammed had no prior knowledge of the operation.

Senior Saudi prince says CIA cannot be trusted on Khashoggi conclusion

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Denmark has suspended future approvals of weapons and military equipment exports to Saudi Arabia in response to the killing of a dissident Saudi journalist and the kingdoms role in the conflict in Yemen, the Danish Foreign Ministry said Thursday,<a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/denmark-no-future-weapons-exports-to-saudis/4669182.html"> reports VOA News.</a>
Germany has suspended issuing future weapons export licenses and has moved to halt all arms sales, while France said Monday said it will decide soon on sanctions over Khashoggis killing at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last month.
Saudi Arabia is one of the worlds biggest weapons importers. It heads a military coalition fighting in a civil war in Yemen in which tens of thousands of people have died and caused a major humanitarian catastrophe.
With the continued deterioration of the already terrible situation in Yemen and the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, we are now in a new situation, said Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen in a statement.
Denmark issued 10 such approvals last year, according to the ministry. Already given approvals will not be suspended, a spokesman said.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump Wednesday praised Saudi Arabia for helping to lower oil prices but pressure intensified for the United States to impose tougher sanctions on its Middle East ally over Khashoggis killing.
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Denmark: No Future Weapons Exports to Saudis

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U.S. President Donald Trump says he has been fully briefed on an audio recording of the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside Riyadh&#8217;s consulate in Istanbul last month, but has no intention of listening to it because of the violence it depicts, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-no-plans-to-listen-to-tape-of-khashoggi-killing/4663743.html">VOA news</a> reports.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a suffering tape. It&#8217;s a terrible tape,&#8221; Trump told Fox News Sunday in a White House interview that was taped Friday.
&#8220;It&#8217;s very violent, very vicious and terrible,&#8221; Trump said.
Trump said Saturday the U.S. government would release its findings on the October 2 killing of Khashoggi on Tuesday. The State Department says no final conclusions have been reached, although some U.S. news accounts have reported that the Central Intelligence Agency has concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Riyadh&#8217;s de facto leader, ordered the killing.
Asked in the Fox interview if the crown prince lied to him about his involvement, Trump replied, &#8220;I don&#8217;t know. Who can really know? But I can say this, he&#8217;s got many people&#8230; that say he had no knowledge.&#8221;
Trump added, &#8220;He told me that he had nothing to do with it. He told me that, I would say, maybe five times at different points, as recently as a few days ago.&#8221;
Saudi Arabia has filed charges against 11 operatives accused of involvement in Khashoggi&#8217;s killing and said it will seek the death penalty against five of them.
Trump conceded that people close to the prince &#8220;were probably involved.&#8221; But he said, &#8220;I want to stick with an ally that in many ways has been very good.&#8221;
Fox interviewer Chris Wallace asked Trump whether he would go along with moves in Congress to cut off U.S. involvement in the Saudi-led war in Yemen or halt arms sales to Riyadh, but Trump said it depends.
&#8220;I want to see Yemen end,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It takes two to tango and Iran has to end also. I want Saudi to stop but I want Iran to stop also.&#8221;
Trump was briefed Saturday on the U.S. investigation of the killing of Khashoggi by telephone by CIA Director Gina Haspel and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo while the president was aboard Air Force One en route to California to inspect the devastation from wildfires in the western state.
The State Department said the U.S. government &#8220;is determined to hold all those responsible for the killing&#8230; accountable&#8221; but that &#8220;numerous unanswered questions&#8221; remain.
The assessment by the CIA, first reported Friday by The Washington Post, contradicts that of Saudi Arabia, whose top prosecutor one day earlier exonerated the crown prince in the killing of Khashoggi.
U.S. officials say the CIA concluded that 15 Saudi agents flew in a Saudi government aircraft to Istanbul and assassinated Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate.
Khashoggi, who wrote opinion columns for the Post and was a critic of the Saudi crown prince, was killed at the Saudi consulate while he was trying to get documents for his planned marriage to a Turkish woman.
The Post said the CIA based its conclusion on multiple sources of intelligence, including a phone call that the prince&#8217;s brother, Khalid bin Salman, who is also the Saudi ambassador to the United States, had with Khashoggi.
In the phone call, Khalid told Khashoggi that it would be safe for him to go the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to retrieve the documents for his marriage. The paper said it was not known whether or not Khalid knew Khashoggi would be killed.
Khalid denied in a tweet on Friday that he had spoken with Khashoggi.
The last contact I had with Mr. Khashoggi was via text on Oct. 26, 2017. I never talked to him by phone and certainly never suggested he go to Turkey for any reason. I ask the U.S. government to release any information regarding this claim,&#8221; he said.
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Trump: No Plans to Listen to Tape of Khashoggi Killing

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U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday he has not been briefed on a Central Intelligence Agency report that concludes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing of a Saudi journalist, but that he would be briefed later in the day,<a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-says-he-ll-be-briefed-on-cia-report-concluding-saudi-prince-ordered-killing-of-journalist/4662838.html"> reports VOA News.</a>
&#8220;We will be talking with the CIA later and lots of others. I&#8217;ll be doing that while I&#8217;m on the plane,&#8221; Trump told reporters at the White House before departing on a flight to California. &#8220;I&#8217;ll also be speaking with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.&#8221;
The assessment by the CIA, first reported by The Washington Post Friday, contradicts that of Saudi Arabia, whose top prosecutor one day earlier exonerated the crown prince in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
U.S. officials say the CIA concluded that 15 Saudi agents flew in a Saudi government aircraft to Istanbul and assassinated Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate.
Khashoggi, who wrote for The Washington Post and was a critic of the Saudi crown prince, was killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October while he was trying to get documents for his planned marriage to a Turkish woman.
The Post said the CIA based its conclusion on multiple sources of intelligence, including a phone call that the prince&#8217;s brother, Khalid bin Salman, who is also the Saudi ambassador to the United States, had with Khashoggi.
In the phone call, Khalid told Khashoggi that it would be safe for him to go the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to retrieve the documents for his marriage. The paper said it was not known whether or not Khalid knew Khashoggi would be killed. 
Khalid denied he had spoken with Khashoggi in a tweet Friday.
&#8220;The last contact I had with Mr. Khashoggi was via text on Oct. 26, 2017. I never talked to him by phone and certainly never suggested he go to Turkey for any reason. I ask the U.S. government to release any information regarding this claim,&#8221; he said.
Saudi officials say the killing of Khashoggi was accidental and say that officials were trying to force Khashoggi to return to the kingdom.
Turkish officials have said the killing was intentional and have been pressuring Saudi Arabia to allow those responsible to be tried in Turkey.
The Trump administration this week sanctioned 17 Saudi officials for their alleged role in the killing. However, some U.S. lawmakers have called on the White House to do more, including reducing the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia. 
President Donald Trump has said the Saudi government has tried to cover up the killing and has said &#8220;the cover-up was one of the worst cover-ups in the history of cover-ups.&#8221;
However, Trump has resisted calls to reduce arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The U.S. president has sought closer ties with Saudi Arabia to counter Iranian influence in the Middle East as well as to increase arms trade deals between Washington and Riyadh.
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Trump Says He’ll Be Briefed on CIA Report Concluding Saudi Prince Ordered Killing of Journalist

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Turkey has dismissed Saudi Arabia&#8217;s latest version of events in the October 2 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at its consulate in Istanbul.
Saudi authorities announced this week 11 people are being charged with the writers killing and that the death penalty is sought for five. The country&#8217;s deputy public prosecutor alleged Khashoggi was killed in a rogue operation that went wrong when a fight broke out as he was being injected with a drug and tied up, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-rejects-saudi-claim-khashoggi-killing/4661666.html">VOA</a> news reports.
I have to say that I did not find some of the [Saudi] statements satisfactory, said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu Thursday.
Cavusoglu went on to repeat Ankaras claim Khashoggi was the victim of premeditated murder.
Turkeys political leadership has been at the forefront of challenging Saudi Arabia about the killing, forcing its leadership to repeatedly change its story.
Senior members of Turkeys ruling AK Party joined hundreds of supporters and friends at an Istanbul mosque on Friday to pray for Khashoggi and vow that justice will be done.
We are going to be defenders of his cause. What we want is not revenge but justice, said Yasin Aktay, deputy AK head and friend of Khashoggi, addressing mourners.
There are 15 people defined as perpetrators [in Khashoggis death], but they didnt make this decision on their own. This is the story being sold to us, and we dont believe in it, he added, criticizing Saudi Arabia&#8217;s latest version of Khashoggi&#8217;s killing.
Saudi Arabia&#8217;s changing story
In the first few days following Khashoggi&#8217;s disappearance, Saudi officials maintained that the journalist left the consulate after a visit for marriage documents.
Following sustained pressure by Ankara, through a campaign of leaks to international media of information about the killing, Saudi Arabia finally acknowledged the writer died in the consulate.
On Thursday, columnist Abdulkadir Selvi of Turkeys Hurriyet newspaper wrote that a 15-minute recording of Khashoggis killers undermines Riyadh&#8217;s claim the death wasnt premeditated.
The Saudi team discusses how to execute Khashoggi. They are reviewing their plan, which was previously prepared, and reminding themselves of the duties of each member, wrote Selvi, who has close links to Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Turkey has already shared a seven-minute audio recording capturing Khashoggis killing with its Western allies and Saudi authorities. Until now, it has been widely assumed the tape was the key piece of evidence held by Turkish investigators. The claim of further recordings is likely to increase pressure on the Saudis and, in particular, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Erdogan has repeatedly alluded to the crown princes alleged involvement, a charge Riyadh strongly denies. Washington, a key ally of the crown prince, continues to back him publicly. And analysts suggest the US is increasingly looking to Erdogan for a resolution of the diplomatic crisis, given his country&#8217;s pivotal role in the death investigation.
In the Khashoggi case, they have very good communication with Washington, said former senior Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen, who served in Washington.
This past week, a U.S. media report suggested Washington was looking into the extradition of Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen in exchange for Ankara&#8217;s easing pressure on Riyadh.
Gulen lives in self-imposed exile in the state of Pennsylvania and denies Turkey&#8217;s accusation of involvement in a failed Turkish coup in 2016.
Washington denies any deal, but U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said Thursday , We continue to evaluate the material that the Turkish government presents requesting his extradition.&#8221;
Gulens extradition is a top diplomatic priority for Turkey even as it dismisses any talk of a deal.
Turkeys pending request for Fethullah Gulens extradition from the United States and the investigation into Khashoggi&#8217;s murder are two separate issues. They are not connected in any way, shape or form, said a senior Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
&#8220;At no point did Turkey offer to hold back on the Khashoggi investigation in return for Fethullah Gulen&#8217;s extradition, he added.
Analysts point out it&#8217;s doubtful Washington could make such an offer, given Gulens extradition is a matter for the courts, which experts say is a potentially lengthy and challenging process.
Also, analysts say since Erdogan sees the Saudi crown prince as his chief rival in the region, his goals may extend well beyond an extradition.
We are in a new phase, and there will be more cooperation between the U.S. and Turkey. And this is part of replacing Mohammed bin Salman, said former Turkish diplomat Selcen.
What Erdogan wants to harvest from this case of Khashoggis murder, he added, is to replace Mohammed bin Salman as the pivotal actor, the linchpin of U.S. strategy in the Middle East.
Some observers suggest while Turkey has so far handled the Khashoggi case with skill, it could be in danger of overreach, given the importance of the U.S.-Saudi relationship.
But they say the U.S. and Saudi Arabia likely will continue to be on the defensive, especially that Turkey, which may well have more incriminating evidence in the case, is now calling for an international investigation.
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Turkey Rejects Saudi Claim on Khashoggi’s Killing

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U.S. President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, discussed how to respond to the killing last month of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a White House official said on Sunday, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-erdogan-khashoggi-response/4654006.html">VOA news</a> reports.
The conversation took place during a Saturday dinner with heads of state and government gathered in Paris to mark the World War I Armistice centenary.
Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed at the kingdom&#8217;s Istanbul consulate by a team sent from Riyadh. Saudi authorities have acknowledged that the killing was premeditated, but his body has not been found.
Erdogan disclosed on Saturday that audio recordings of the killing had been given to the U.S., French, German and British governments, adding that the operation had been ordered at the &#8220;highest levels&#8221; of the Saudi government.
Trump expects to form a &#8220;stronger opinion&#8221; by this coming week on Khashoggi&#8217;s killing and Washington&#8217;s response, he said last Wednesday &#8211; adding that he was working with Congress, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to establish who bore responsibility.
In a phone call with the crown prince on Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo &#8220;emphasized that the United States will hold all of those involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi accountable, and that Saudi Arabia must do the same,&#8221; the State Department said in a statement.
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