Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday said that the 18 people who were arrested in Saudi Arabia in relation to the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi know who the murderer is.
Saudi Arabia has detained 18 people and dismissed five senior government officials as part of the investigation into Khashoggi’s murder. Some were members of a 15-man hit team, many of them Saudi intelligence operatives, who flew into Istanbul hours before Khashoggi’s death, Turkish security sources say.
Erdoğan also called on Saudi Arabia to disclose the location of the body of Khashoggi and said Turkey had more information about the case than it has shared so far.
He said Riyadh needs to disclose the identity of the "local cooperator" who purportedly took Khashoggi's body from Saudi agents after the journalist was killed at the consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.
“Saudi's public prosecutor is due to meet the Istanbul prosecutor in Istanbul on Sunday,” he added.
A van left the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul Friday morning after consular staff moved three suitcases and a black plastic bag to the vehicle, according to an Anadolu Agency reporter on the scene outside the consulate. The suitcases and plastic bag were moved to a van with black-tinted windows from another vehicle while a man from inside the consulate carrying a coiled white cable also got in the van.The contents of the suitcases and plastic bag were unknown, as was the identity of the man.Video: Saudi van with 3 suitcases leaves Istanbul consulateThe consulate is under heightened scrutiny amid near-daily revelations about the case of slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post, was last seen on Oct. 2 when he entered the consulate building.After days of denying any knowledge of his whereabouts, Saudi officials last week admitted that Khashoggi was killed in a "brawl" at the consulate.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday laid out his country’s initial findings in its investigation, saying Khashoggi's “murder was premeditated."Washington Post starts Khashoggi truth ad campaignKhashoggi's son arrives in US after travel ban liftedRussia’s Putin, Saudi king discuss Khashoggi issueUS actress rejects funding for film from Saudi princeGermany's EconMin welcomes proposal for joint EU position toward Saudi
Saudi van with 3 suitcases leaves Istanbul consulate
The Washington Post began a new advertisement campaign Thursday aimed at applying pressure on Saudi Arabia's senior leadership to provide the true series of events behind Jamal Khashoggi's killing.The newspaper’s digital and print "Demand the Truth" effort for answers in the death of their columnist places the tagline below a portrait of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, widely suspected of orchestrating the plot that led to Khashoggi's disappearance. Bin Salman has denied the charge."On Tuesday, October 2 Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi entered the Consulate of Saudi Arabia in Istanbul and was brutally murdered," the full-page advertisement reads as bin Salman looms large.It is accompanied by a brief 15-second video bearing the same content.Khashoggi was last seen that day when he entered the consulate.Russia’s Putin, Saudi king discuss Khashoggi issueAfter days of denying any knowledge of his whereabouts, Saudi officials last week said Khashoggi was killed in a "brawl" at the consulate. But no body has been produced and Riyadh has yet to explain its shifting explanations for Khashoggi's disappearance after initially claiming he left the diplomatic facility in Istanbul, and then claiming he might have been murdered by "rogue killers."Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday laid out his country’s initial findings in its investigation, saying Khashoggi's "murder was premeditated," a finding the Saudis appeared to inch closer to Thursday as the Kingdom's public prosecutor said evidence provided by Turkey indicated Khashoggi's killing was planned in advance.After initially striking a positive tone on Saudi Arabia's "brawl" explanation for Khashoggi's death, U.S. President Donald Trump has taken a markedly more pessimistic approach in recent days, claiming Saudi Arabia's explanation is the "worst coverup ever."Khashoggi's son arrives in US after travel ban lifted
Washington Post starts Khashoggi truth ad campaign
Turkey will focus on the east of Euphrates, says Erdoğan
Erdoğan also said, “We are determined to focus our attention to the east of Euphrates rather than Manbij.”
“We will not allow activities that will endanger our borders,” he added.
Turkey and the U.S. in June struck a deal focusing on the withdrawal of YPG/PKK terror elements from the northwestern Syrian town of Manbij, and Erdoğan has repeatedly stated that Turkey might launch a military operation to the east of the Euphrates river to purge the region of terror elements.