Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was "savagely planned" by the Saudis.

Erdogan in a speech to Turkey's Parliament laid out a timeline of events from the moment a team of Saudis arrived in Istanbul for what he said was the intentional killing of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist critical of the Saudi government who disappeared after going into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.

"The information and evidence we have gathered until now shows that Khashoggi was the victim of a murder which was savagely planned,” Erdogan said.

Khashoggi, who has been living in the U.S., went missing after visiting the consulate for documents he needed to marry his fiancé, Hatice Cengiz. His disappearance set off an international uproar.

Saudi officials at first denied involvement, saying Khashoggi had left the consulate through the back door. That explanation has since evolved to Saudi officials' saying that Khashoggi was killed unintentionally in the consulate when he was put in a chokehold.

Erdogan said Tuesday that the 18 individuals whom Saudi officials identified late last week as having being involved in Khashoggi's death are the same whom a Turkish investigation has found to be responsible, Erdogan said.

The Turkish president didn't mention the audio recording that Turkish media said had recorded Khashoggi's murder. He also didn't present any physical evidence from the investigation.

Erdogan said Saudi Arabia was obligated to reveal the identity of everyone involved and called for the prosecution of those responsible to happen in Turkey.

Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia’s leaders, including the king, to accede to a Turkish trial for the suspects. "My proposal to the Saudis is that the 15 plus three -- 18 -- people who were arrested should be tried on our soil, in Istanbul."

Saudi officials said Friday, more than two weeks after Khashoggi’s disappearance, that the journalist died in a fight at the consulate.

Over the weekend, the Saudis' explanation continued to evolve with a Saudi official's telling ABC News that Khashoggi died when he was "placed in a chokehold position" to stop him from leaving the consulate and calling for help.

On Monday, CNN received surveillance videos from a senior Turkish official that appeared to show a member of the 15-person Saudi squad dressed in Khashoggi's clothes the same day the journalist went missing.

Then, a Saudi official told ABC News that the team of men who met Khashoggi at the consulate was acting on orders from the Saudi intelligence agency, GIP. According to the official, the mission involved taking Khashoggi to a safe house for 48 hours in order to pressure him to return to Saudi Arabia.

President Donald Trump on Monday told reporters he wasn't satisfied with the Saudis' response to Khashoggi's death, adding, "I'm not satisfied with what I've heard."

"I don't want to lose all of that investment that's being made in our country," the president added.

CIA Director Gina Haspel headed to Turkey on Monday to address the investigation of Khashoggi's death, two sources confirmed to ABC News.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Monday to discuss American-Saudi strategic partnerships, according to the Saudi Press Agency. Saudi Arabia has said that the crown prince was not involved in the mission against Khashoggi.

Erdogan in his address to Parliament on Tuesday criticized the conflicting explanations of Khashoggi's killing and asked why Khashoggi’s body has still not been recovered.</s>Turkish president said Khashoggi was killed in a planned operation, contradicting official Saudi account.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed the country’s parliament about the investigation into the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Here is an English translation of Tuesday’s speech. The original comments were in Turkish:

“At this point in our group meeting, I want to make a comprehensive evaluation of the Khashoggi investigation, after it has been confirmed that he was killed. I’d like to firstly offer my condolences to the late Khashoggi, his family, friends, the people of Saudi Arabia, where he is from and the media world. First, let’s quickly refresh our memories.

“Khashoggi first goes to the Saudi Arabian consulate at 11:50 on September 28, Friday for procedures relating to marriage. It is understood that this visit is then passed on to the team planning the murder. Therefore, a planning period for a roadmap begins. Some consulate workers rushing back to their country shows there were preparations there.

 “On October 2 at 01:45, a second three-man team again arrives in Istanbul in a commercial flight and goes to the hotel. A third 9-person team, including generals, arrives via private jet and goes to a different hotel. In total, a team made up of 15 people arrived separately between 09:50 and 11:00 to meet at the consulate.”On October 1 at 16:30, so the Monday, one day before the murder, a three-person team arrives in Istanbul on a commercial flight and goes to the hotel first, later the consulate. Meanwhile, another team from the consulate is carrying out exploratory searches in the Belgrad Forest and Yalova.

“Firstly the hard-disk in the camera system at the consulate was ripped out and Khashoggi is then called at 11:50 to confirm his appointment. At 13:08 on the same day, Khashoggi, who returned from London to Istanbul, arrives at the consulate building on foot. His fiancee is with him. And after this, nothing was heard from him again. At 17:50, his fiancee told our official authorities that Khashoggi was kidnapped at the consulate building or something bad happened to him. Upon this, the Istanbul security officials and police start an inspection.”

“After looking into the camera records filming the area, it becomes clear that Khashoggi never left the consulate building. According to the Vienna agreement – which was debated – they have diplomatic immunity. (EU foreign policy chief Federica) Mogherini had some comments on this the other day as well, and I believe the Vienna agreement will most likely be put to the table. In the first stage, there were no procedures that could be done on the consulate and consular workers.

“Then, while our intelligence and security officials are looking into the situation, the chief prosecutor’s office and delegated deputy prosecutor launch an investigation as well. As the investigation deepens, very interesting details are obtained. Firstly, it is seen that on the eve of the murder, 15 Saudi security, intelligence, forensic experts arrived in Turkey. Of these, six left our country at 18:20 on October 2, and seven at 22:50 with private jets.

“After midnight, a man who was trying to resemble Khashoggi with his glasses, clothes and beard as well as another person with him, depart for Riyadh via a commercial flight. On the day of the event, the consulate workers are put in one room with the excuse that there is a supervision and residence personnel are given days off for the same reason. In their statement on October 4, the Saudi leadership initially fully rejects any claims that Khashoggi was killed.

“In fact, on October 6, the consul general invites a Reuters correspondent inside and opens and closes cupboards, electrical panels and doors in a careless manner, trying to defend himself. Meanwhile, our intelligence and security officials and prosecutors are deepening their investigation and attempting to uncover new evidence and documents. Our foreign ministry constantly discussed this issue with its counterparts and engaged in the sharing of information.

“Afterwards, there were talks with the 11-person Saudi delegation coming to our country on October 11. The topic being kept on the agenda by ourselves and the global media then led to the statement from Saudi authorities to allow our search of the consulate building. First, there are some questions that we must ask and seek answers to. This happens in Istanbul, so we are responsible and as those responsible, we have the right to question it. As the cloud slowly lifts, other countries also started taking action. At every opportunity, we said we would not remain silent and that we would take every step required by our conscience and the law.”

“In order to not unjustly condemn anyone, we waited for the results of the investigation. At our first phone call with King Salman on October 14, I explained the situation to him in accordance with the findings at hand. In this phone call, we agreed to form a joint working group and they started working. Upon the King’s orders, teams tied to the prosecutors and police entered the consulate to carry out searches.

“While the consul general did not allow this previously, I voiced some things about his incompetence to the first delegation that came, and also to the king. As a result of this, one day after our talk, the consul general was relieved of his duty and returned to his country. On October 18, there were inspections at the consulate once again.

“On 19 October, 17 days after the murder, Saudi Arabia officially accepted Khashoggi was murdered. In the statement made by the leadership, they said Khashoggi was killed during a fight at the consulate. On the same day, I had another call with Salman during late hours. He told me 18 people had been arrested so far in the investigation following the acknowledgement of the killing. It is seen that the names being arrested match those found by our intelligence and security officials. Therefore, these 15 people, plus the other three who are already working at the consulate. These developments are important for the official acceptance of the killing. On October 21, I also held a comprehensive phone call with US President Trump and agreed to enlighten all aspects of this issue.

“As Turkey, we carried out and managed this whole process in accordance with international law and a state mentality. Despite this, our country is being subjected to extensive campaigns to smear and corner our country and change our direction by various media organs. We know with what goal these campaigns are being carried out and by whom. It appears these attacks against our country’s reputation have not and will not prevent our attempts to uncover the truth.

“Firstly, this murder might have been carried out in the consulate building, which counts as Saudi Arabian territory. However, it should not be forgotten that this is within Turkish borders. Moreover, the Vienna agreement and other international laws all object to questioning about such a vicious murder being hidden through diplomatic immunity. We will, of course, investigate and inspect this murder within our borders and do everything necessary. On the other hand, the fact that Jamal Khashoggi is an internationally renowned journalist, aside from his Saudi identity, also puts an international responsibility on us. Turkey, as the representative of the world’s common conscious along with its own sovereignty, is following up this issue.”

“The findings and evidence so far show Khashoggi was the victim of a vicious murder. Covering up a savage murder like this will only hurt the human conscience. We expect the same sensitivity from all parties, primarily the Saudi Arabian leadership. The Saudi administration has actually taken an important step by admitting to the murder.

“From now on, we expect them to uncover all those responsible for this matter from top to bottom and make them face the necessary punishments in front of the law. We have strong signs that the murder was the result of a planned operation, not a spontaneous development. In light of the current information, these questions continue to pose questions for everyone. Why have these 15 people, involved in the incident, met in Istanbul on the day of the murder? We are seeking answers to this. Who are these people receiving orders from? Why has the consulate been opened to investigation days after the murder rather than immediately after? Why have so many inconsistent statements been made while the murder was so clear? Why has the body of someone who was accepted as killed not been found yet?

“And, if the claim that the body was given to a local collaborator is true, then I ask: Who is this local collaborator? This local collaborator isn’t being mentioned by an ordinary person, Saudi Arabia’s officials say this. Therefore, you are obliged to reveal this local collaborator. You will reveal him.

“Without these questions being answered, nobody should think the issue will be closed. Intelligence and security institutions have evidence showing the murder was certainly planned. Once the evaluation of this information is completed, they will find their place in the dossiers of the prosecutor’s investigation. Pinning such a case on some intelligence and security members will not satisfy us and the international community. The conscience of humanity will only be satisfied once everybody is called into account, from those who gave the orders, to those who carried them out.

“Personally, I do not doubt the sincerity of King Salman. It is very important for such a critical investigation to be carried out by objective, fair teams with no relations to the murder. Since this is a political murder, then any other culprits and accomplices in other countries, if there are any, must be included in the investigation as well. I believe this is what is required in international law, in Islamic law and in Saudi law.

“As Turkey, we will follow this issue until the end. We will make sure our laws and international laws are implemented. In fact, I am also making a call from here today. This call is to the Saudi Arabian King and leadership: Where the event occurred is Istanbul. Therefore, these 15+3 people – the 18 that were arrested – should be tried in Istanbul. That is my proposal. Of course, the decision is theirs, but this is my proposal and demand since this is where the event took place. That is why this is important.”</s>Turkey, where Saudi writer died, has culture of surveillance

ISTANBUL (AP) — One mystery surrounding the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul is the existence of purported audio recordings of his death. The recordings, reported to include voices of Saudi officials who were present as well as confirmation of a grisly scheme to dispose of the dismembered body, were reported in pro-government newspapers in Turkey but have not been officially confirmed.

Saudi Arabia says Khashoggi was killed by accident in a "fistfight" with rogue officials, although international suspicions that the killing was ordered with the knowledge of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salam are mounting.

Whether or not the recordings exist, or would ever be released if they do, the reports add to tales of intrigue and surveillance in Turkey, a country where wiretapping scandals have erupted from time to time and whose government closely monitors the internet, banning websites and targeting critics deemed a threat to national security.

Here are prominent examples from the rich history of spying in Turkey, a key geopolitical player because of its strategic location, and the scene of many high-stakes showdowns among internal factions vying for power:

— Since an attempted coup in 2016, Turkish authorities have taken more robust steps to monitor digital and other communications. As part of a crackdown on suspected coup plotters, security forces rounded up many people accused of using ByLock, an encrypted mobile messaging application. ByLock was allegedly used by the network of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who denies Turkish allegations that he was behind the coup attempt. Some Western governments and human rights activists said the crackdown went too far, rounding up opponents of the government who had done nothing wrong or even people with no strong political affiliation.

— In 2014, a recording of then-Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and top security officials talking about possible military action in Syria during the civil war there was leaked on YouTube, in what appeared to be an attempt to undermine the government ahead of key local elections. Suspicion fell on Gulen supporters alleged to hold key positions in the police, judiciary and other state institutions.

— In 2013, alleged recordings of phone conversations involving Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was then prime minister and has since become president, as well as Cabinet ministers and top officials were posted on the internet amid an investigation of alleged government corruption. Erodgan denounced the recordings as fabrications aimed at discrediting him and said they were part of a "coup attempt" by people loyal to Gulen, who was once allied with the prime minister but later became a critic.

— In 2011, 10 opposition politicians in Turkey quit after the release of grainy, black-and-white videos appearing to show senior members of the Nationalist Action Party, a hard-line nationalist group, in liaisons with women who were not their wives. The smear campaign came just ahead of elections won by Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party. Suspicions of who was behind it ranged from disgruntled opposition party insiders, to supporters of the government, to an alleged gang of coup plotters with shadowy links to state agencies.

— In 2010, Deniz Baykal, the longtime leader of Turkey's main opposition party, was forced to resign after the release of a video purportedly showing him in a hotel bedroom with a woman who was also a member of the Republican People's Party. Both were married at the time. Baykal later said he was targeted in a conspiracy, although who exactly obtained the alleged sex video was never publicly clarified. Some political commentators argued that the party benefited from Baykal's exit because it cleared the way for fresh leadership.

— In 2007, Turkey passed a law to regulate the internet, setting the stage for the banning of thousands of websites and periodic blocking of access to Twitter, YouTube and other sites. Social media came under increasing government scrutiny in 2013 after demonstrators used it to organize the Gezi Park protests that turned into a flashpoint for anti-government anger.</s>President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was expected to divulge details of Turkey's investigation into the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi for the first time on Tuesday, in a highly anticipated speech he had said would reveal the "naked truth" about Khashoggi's fate.

Since Khashoggi's death three weeks ago after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, the governments of Saudi Arabia and Turkey have offered sharply differing versions of what happened to him. The Saudi story has shifted sharply over time, from assertions he walked out of the consulate unharmed to finally acknowledging Khashoggi had been killed, allegedly in a fistfight that involved "rogue" Saudi agents.

But Turkish officials, from the start, have said Khashoggi was killed in a premeditated fashion by a team of Saudi agents who were dispatched to Istanbul from Riyadh, the Saudi capital, and that his body was later dismembered. Over the past three weeks, Turkish officials have dribbled out details of their investigation to the news media that are intended to bolster their case as well as to force a confession - and possibly other concessions - from the Saudi leadership, analysts said.

Khashoggi, a contributor to The Washington Post who had written columns critical of the Saudi leadership over the last year, had gone to the consulate on the afternoon of Oct. 2 to obtain documents that would allow him to remarry.

His death has cast a harsh light on the rule of the Saudi Arabia's young crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who has eased social restrictions at home while pursuing an unrelenting crackdown on rivals and critics, imprisoning hundreds. Mohammed has also tried to lure exiled dissidents like Khashoggi, who lived in Virginia, back to Saudi Arabia, Khashoggi's friends and other exiles said.

The case has also embarrassed the Trump administration, which regards the crown prince as one of its closest Arab allies and Saudi Arabia as a cornerstone of a U.S. strategy to counter Iran.

A stream of Turkish video leaks that surfaced on Monday appeared to depict the Saudis trying to cover their tracks after Khashoggi's death, including images said to be of men at the consulate burning documents and a body double wearing Khashoggi's clothes, to make it appear the journalist had walked out of the consulate as the Saudis claimed.

The leaks also seemed intended to whip up a sense of anticipation ahead of the speech by Erdogan, who has chided the Saudis in recent weeks for not cooperating with the Turkish investigation but stopped short of blaming the Saudi government for Khashoggi's death.

On Sunday, in a preview of his speech, Erdogan said he would explain the episode "in a very different way," the semiofficial Anadolu news agency reported.

"The incident will be revealed entirely," he said.</s>Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan initially referred to the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on October 2 as “very, very upsetting.” Now, he has vowed to reveal the “naked truth” of Khasgoggi’s death, which Saudi Arabia has belatedly admitted happened at its consulate in Istanbul.

Khashoggi’s elimination on Turkish soil was a political trigger that may provide Erdoğan, Turkey’s modern sultan, with ammunition against Saudi Arabia – his main rival for political leadership of the Muslim world. With Islam’s two holiest cities of Mecca and Medina under their guardianship, the ruling Saud family boasts the title Custodians of the Two Holy Mosques and govern the Hajj and Umra, pilgrimages that all Muslims are expected to make.

Yet shortly after accusations about Khashoggi’s alleged murder were drip-fed by Turkish authorities, Erdoğan spoke at a meeting with faith leaders as part of his bid to cement his religious legitimacy. He was quoted by Turkish agencies as saying that Turkey “is the only country that can lead the Muslim world”.

From his 2002 election as prime minister to his current presidency, Erdoğan has eroded Turkey’s historically secular framework. The Islamisation of Turkey has tilted it away from the West and toward the Middle East. Erdoğan “is focused on making Islam the centrepiece of Turkish politics and sees the country’s foreign policy role as being primarily anti-Western”, explains Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute.

While Saudi Arabia’s royal family may be custodians of the two holy mosques, Erdoğan is drawing on the glory of the Ottoman past, investing in the expansion of Ottoman ports that served as transit hubs for Mecca and Medina, while also increasing his leadership activities in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

In so doing, it’s inevitable that Erdoğan will clash with Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman. Colloquially known as MBS, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince presents Islam as a “sensible, simple religion that is being hijacked”, arguing that his domestic reforms are an attempt to counter radicalisation and return Islam to a liberal stance. Domestic reform, however, is contrasted with disastrous military operations in Yemen and Syria, as MBS seeks to prove his military might and leverage regional conflict to counter Iranian influence.

Despite the humanitarian costs of regional battles, MBS has cultivated the image of a liberal young leader for Western audiences. So while Erdoğan pushes an Islamic Turkey to lead the Muslim world, MBS prefers courting the West while treating how he handles domestic affairs, whether through arrests or worse, as separate from his US and British alliances.

With the disappearance of Khashoggi, however, the liberal image palatable to Western audiences is under threat. The Washington Post, where Khashoggi was a columnist, is now writing about the crown prince’s “dark and bullying side”. MBS is a split royal, friendly to the West but ruthless in the Middle East.

The pattern is clear: MBS’s Saudi Arabia uses reforms as cover to purge rivals of status and wealth. This was clear during the Ritz Carlton Roundup in November 2017, in which princes and investors were detained in a luxury hotel as part of an anti-corruption purge until agreeing to forego much of their assets. Other reforms serve to distract international media by letting women drive while female activists remain jailed.

Saudi Arabia has led the ongoing blockade of Qatar, which Turkey opposed. Turkey and Qatar’s mutual investments are not the sole reason. Both countries maintain relations with Iran and support the Muslim Brotherhood, which Saudi Arabia regards as a threat to traditional monarchy.

Read more: Qatar blockade and Saudi Arabia: could there be a power shift in Doha?

Investors, sponsors and media partners of Saudi Arabia’s Future Investment Initiative conference, on 23-25 October in Riyadh have pulled out. The IMF has followed suit and even US President Donald Trump is being pressured by senators to punish Saudi Arabia for Khashoggi’s fate.

Erdoğan is moving quickly. As the Saudis cancelled their annual diplomatic reception in Washington, Erdoğan received US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Ankara. The meeting gave Turkey a chance to push its perspectives on Syria and its demands that the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, abandon Syria’s narrow Manbij region near Turkey’s border, a request the US has been slow to acknowledge.

Having returned US pastor Andrew Brunson from Turkish imprisonment to US soil, Khashoggi’s death and the pressure it is placing on Trump is providing Erdoğan with a springboard to gain a closer relationship with the United States while using the incident to deflect Saudi portrayals of Turkey as a security threat.

Erdoğan is using the Khashoggi incident to gain closer relations with the US and push Turkey’s interests. On October 22, the Turkish press reported that Erdoğan and Trump shared a phone conversation and agreed that Saudi Arabia must come clean on all details of Khashoggi’s death.

Yet Erdoğan’s dreams of leading the Muslim world may not be realised by the Khashoggi affair. Saudi investment in Turkey at a time when the Turkish lira remains weak must be balanced with Erdogan’s ambitions and rivalry. The OIC, headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, has officially sided with Saudi Arabia in the wake of the Khashoggi affair, praising the proposal of a joint Turkish-Saudi investigation and arguing that Riyadh is “above suspicions”.

The world seems to disagree with the notion that Riyadh is “above suspicions”. However, commentators have pointed to Iran as the main beneficiary of a Saudi exile’s death on Turkish soil. With Saudi Arabia’s reputation on the line, Riyadh is in no position to portray Iran as a threat to the region.

“Iran has repeatedly seized on Saudi miscalculations to gain leverage and protect itself from regional isolation,” says Chatham House’s Sanam Vakil. While Saudi Arabia is cornered and the world distracted by the brutality of what happened to Khashoggi, Iran can continue quietly building its missile program, rework the nuclear agreement and sell its oil before US sanctions resume in November. Tehran may even consider relations with Saudi Arabia, its Sunni counterpart. After all, how many friends will Saudi Arabia have left?</s>Turkish president says Saudi officials planned murder of Saudi writer days before his death

Saudi officials murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi in their Istanbul consulate after plotting his death for days, Turkey’s president said Tuesday, contradicting Saudia Arabia’s explanation that the writer was accidentally killed. He demanded that the kingdom reveal the identities of all involved, regardless of rank.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said he wants Saudi Arabia to allow 18 suspects that it detained for the Saudi’s killing to be tried in Turkish courts, setting up further complications with the Saudi government, which has said it is conducting its own investigation and will punish those involved.

“To blame such an incident on a handful of security and intelligence members would not satisfy us or the international community,” Erdogan said in a speech to ruling party lawmakers in parliament.

“Saudi Arabia has taken an important step by admitting the murder. As of now we expect of them to openly bring to light those responsible – from the highest ranked to the lowest – and to bring them to justice,” the Turkish president said.

Erdogan’s speech was previously pitched as revealing the “naked truth” about Khashoggi’s slaying. Instead it served merely to put a named source to information already circulated by anonymous officials and the Turkish press in the days since the columnist for The Washington Post walked into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

However, he kept pressure on the kingdom with his demands for Turkish prosecution of the suspects as well as punishment for the plot’s masterminds.

“All evidence gathered shows that Jamal Khashoggi was the victim of a savage murder. To cover up such a savagery would hurt the human conscience,” he said.

Erdogan didn’t mention Saudi Arabia’s assertive Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in his speech, though officials linked to the royal have been implicated in the killing. The kingdom has said the heir-apparent of the world’s top oil exporter was not involved, but any major decision must be signed off by the highest powers within its ruling Al Saud family.

International skepticism has intensified since Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that Khashoggi died in a brawl. The case has shocked the world and raised suspicions that a Saudi hit squad planned Khashoggi’s killing after he walked into the consulate on Oct. 2, and then attempted to cover it up.

Before Erdogan’s announcement, top Turkish officials said Turkey would clarify exactly what happened to Khashoggi and a stream of leaks to national and international media has increased pressure on Saudi Arabia, which is hosting a glitzy investment conference this week that many dignitaries have decided to skip because of the scandal.

Saudi Arabia said it arrested suspects and that several top intelligence officials were fired over the killing, but critics alleged that the punishment was designed to absolve Prince Mohammed of any responsibility.

On Monday, leaked surveillance video showed a man strolling out of the diplomatic post hours after Khashoggi disappeared into the consulate, apparently wearing the columnist’s clothes as part of a macabre deception to sow confusion over his fate.

The new video broadcast by CNN, as well as a pro-government Turkish newspaper’s report that a member of Prince Mohammed’s entourage made four calls to the royal’s office from the consulate around the same time, put more pressure on the kingdom. Meanwhile, Turkish crime-scene investigators swarmed a garage Monday night in Istanbul where a Saudi consular vehicle had been parked.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, meanwhile, said Tuesday the investigation into the killing of Khashoggi would produce the truth about what happened and that his country was committed to ensuring “that the investigation is thorough and complete and that the truth is revealed and that those responsible will be held to account.”

Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, in Indonesia, also pledged that mechanisms will be put in place so that “something like this can never happen again.”</s>Turkish police have reportedly been given permission to search a well in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Here, a Turkish police officer enters the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 12. Getty

Turkish police have been given permission to search a well in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where rumors have claimed Jamal Khashoggi's body was hidden, Turkish state-run TV reported on Wednesday.

The search comes as part of Turkey's investigation into Khashoggi's whereabouts, Turkey's NTV channel reported, as cited by Reuters.

The reported search of the comes two days after Doğu Perinçek, the chairman of Turkey's left-wing nationalist Patriotic Party, claimed that parts of Khashoggi's body had been found in a well in the the consulate.

It was unclear where Perinçek got that information, or whether he was privy to Turkey's intelligence, which has been the source of most of the details of what happened (much of which is unconfirmed).

Earlier on Wednesday Saudi officials tried to block Turkey from searching the well, the state-run Turkish newspaper Anadolu Agency reported around 2 p.m. local time, citing unnamed security sources.

NTV's report that the Saudis had allowed the search came around an hour later.

Turkish police have searched the Saudi consulate and consul-general's home before. It's not clear whether they were given access to the well during earlier searches.

The Saudi consulate in Istanbul seen on October 10. Murad Sezer/Reuters

Perinçek on Monday said he expected Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss the claim in a speech on Tuesday, but that did not come to pass.

Erdogan appeared to ignore those rumors in his speech. He instead settled for alluding to Saudi claims, made anonymously to Reuters and the Associated Press, that Khashoggi's body was rolled up in a fabric and handed over to a local Turkish collaborator for disposal.

He said: "There is a claim that the body of Khashoggi has been given to a local person. I am asking: Who is that local person?"

Although Khashoggi's killing took place in Istanbul, Turkish officials have had to adhere to Saudi rules because the consulate is diplomatic Saudi property.

Turkish authorities weren't allowed to search the Saudi consulate until two weeks after Khashoggi's October 2 disappearance. Footage caught cleaning crews moving boxes of cleaning supplies into the building before Turkey was allowed to send in its investigator.

Erdogan lamented the delay in his Tuesday speech, saying: "Because of diplomatic immunity, we couldn't go into the building initially. This has become a matter for discussion. What kind of steps can a host country take in a similar situation in the future?"

Turkey has challenged the Saudi narrative on Khashoggi's death at every turn, and experts say it is likely because it is trying to extract some kind of concession from the kingdom.

Lisel Hintz, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University, added that Turkey's state-run newspapers that have been covering the crisis tend to print whatever the government wants them to.

Read more: Why Turkish officials keep challenging Saudi Arabia's claims about Khashoggi's killing

Saudi Arabia admitted last Friday — 17 days after Khashoggi's disappearance — that the journalist died in its Istanbul consulate, but claimed it was due to a physical altercation gone wrong during a "rogue operation."

Turkey's president contradicted that claim on Tuesday, saying instead that Khashoggi's death was the result of a preplanned murder.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday called the incident a "cover-up", adding that it is "one of the worst in the history of cover-ups."</s>What The Khashoggi Case Means For Israel

The international fallout over the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi extends beyond Turkey, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. Israelis and Palestinians weigh in on the controversy.</s>WASHINGTON/LONDON, (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia yesterday called the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at its Istanbul consulate a “huge and grave mistake,” but sought to shield its powerful crown prince from the widening crisis, saying Mohammed bin Salman had not been aware.

The comments from Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir were some of the most direct yet from Riyadh, which has given multiple and conflicting accounts about Khashoggi’s killing on Oct. 2, first denying his death and later admitting it amid an international outcry.

“This was an operation that was a rogue operation. This was an operation where individuals ended up exceeding the authorities and responsibilities they had,” Jubeir said on the U.S. broadcaster Fox.

“They made the mistake when they killed Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate and they tried to cover up for it,” he said.

The weeks of denial and lack of credible evidence in the face of allegations from Turkish officials that Khashoggi had been killed have shaken global confidence in ties with the world’s top oil exporter.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin said Saudi Arabia’s admission that the Washington Post columnist was killed in a fistfight was a “good first step but not enough,” though he added it was premature to discuss sanctions against Riyadh.

Three European powers – Germany, Britain and France – pressed Riyadh to provide facts, and Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany would not export arms to Saudi Arabia while uncertainty over Khashoggi’s fate persisted.

Late yesterday, the Saudi Press Agency said both Saudi King Salman and Prince Mohammed had called Khashoggi’s son, Salah, to express condolences.

Jubeir had extended condolences to Khashoggi’s family earlier yesterday. “Unfortunately, a huge and grave mistake was made and I assure them that those responsible will be held accountable for this,” he told Fox.

Jubeir said the Saudis did not know how Khashoggi, a Saudi national and U.S. resident, had been killed or where his body was. He also said Prince Mohammed was not responsible.

Khashoggi vanished after entering the consulate to obtain documents for his upcoming marriage.

After two weeks denying any involvement in the 59-year-old’s disappearance, Saudi Arabia on Saturday said Khashoggi, a critic of the crown prince, died during a fight in the building. An hour later, another Saudi official attributed the death to a chokehold.

“Nothing can justify this killing and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” Germany, Britain and France said in their joint statement.

“There remains an urgent need for clarification of exactly what happened … beyond the hypotheses that have been raised so far in the Saudi investigation, which need to be backed by facts to be considered credible.”

The White House said late yesterday that U.S. President Donald Trump had spoken to French President Emmanuel Macron and the two had discussed a range of issues including circumstances surrounding Khashoggi’s death.

Reflecting international scepticism over its account, a senior Saudi government official laid out a new version that contradicts previous explanations.

The latest account includes details on how 15 Saudis sent to confront Khashoggi had threatened him with being drugged and kidnapped and killed him in a chokehold when he resisted. A member of the team dressed in Khashoggi’s clothes to make it appear as if he had left the consulate.

Turkish officials suspect Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate by the Saudi agents and his body cut up. Turkish sources say authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting Khashoggi’s murder.

In a speech on Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared to suggest he was getting ready to release some information about the Turkish investigation, and would do so at his weekly speech on Tuesday to members of his ruling AK Party.

Erdogan has remained largely silent on the case, although Turkey’s pro-government newspapers have released information about events at the consulate.

Turkey’s Anadolu agency said early on Monday that Erdogan and Trump had spoken on the telephone and agreed that “all aspects” of the case needed to be cleared up.

For Saudi Arabia’s allies – particularly in the West – the question will be whether they believe that the prince, who has painted himself as a reformer, has any culpability. King Salman, 82, has handed the day-to-day running of Saudi Arabia to him.

“I am not satisfied until we find the answer. But it was a big first step, it was a good first step. But I want to get to the answer,” Trump told reporters this weekend, when asked about the Saudi investigation and Riyadh’s firing of officials.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Trump said that “obviously there’s been deception, and there’s been lies.” He had suggested last week that “rogue killers” might have been responsible for Khashoggi’s death, a comment critics called an effort to play down the crisis.

A leading Republican U.S. senator said he believed the crown prince was behind the killing, adding that the Saudis had lost credibility in their explanations of his death. “Yes, I think he did it,” Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told CNN, referring to the crown prince.

King Salman ordered the dismissal of five officials, including Saud al-Qahtani, a royal court adviser seen as the right-hand man to Prince Mohammed, and deputy intelligence chief Ahmed Asiri, Saudi state media reported on Saturday.

The king also ordered a restructuring of the intelligence service, to be led by Prince Mohammed, suggesting the prince still retained wide-ranging authority.

Some governments and prominent executives have said they would pull out of a forthcoming investment conference in Saudi Arabia.

According to the senior Saudi official, the Saudi team rolled up Khashoggi’s body in a rug, took it out in a consular vehicle and handed it to a “local cooperator” for disposal.</s>President Donald Trump soaked up the grandeur of Saudi Arabia on his first foreign stop as president last year and envisioned huge benefits for the United States in building closer ties with the repressive and oil-rich desert kingdom.

Now, the White House relationship with Riyadh is imperiled over the mysterious disappearance of a Saudi writer, and the situation is creating friction between the Trump administration and members of Congress demanding to know if the columnist for The Washington Post was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Turkey.

Trump said he has talked to officials at the highest level of the kingdom and is “demanding everything” to explain how Jamal Khashoggi, an activist who had been critical of Saudi leaders, vanished after he walked into the consulate in Istanbul to get documents he needed to get married.

Turkish authorities claim Khashoggi, who resided in the United States, was killed by members of an elite Saudi “assassination squad.” The kingdom describes the allegation as “baseless.” But if Saudi Arabia is found to be complicit in his disappearance or death, the warm U.S.-Saudi relationship — and even hopes for Middle East peace — could be upended.

A senior administration official said Friday that the U.S. is in ongoing contact with Turkish and Saudi officials about the case. The U.S. believes it is essential that Turkish authorities — with full, transparent support from the Saudi government — are able to conduct a thorough investigation and officially release the results, the official said.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak publicly, said the U.S. supports Turkish investigators’ efforts, will not prejudge the outcome of the official investigation, but stands ready to assist.

Trump said Thursday the U.S. had “investigators over there and we’re working with Turkey” and Saudi Arabia. But he has provided no details.

Trump has backed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s ambitious campaign to modernize the conservative kingdom and its economy. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who exchanges phone and text messages with the young crown prince, was instrumental in last year’s deal to sell $110 billion in U.S. weapons to the kingdom.

But even before Khashoggi vanished, concerns were mounting in Congress over Saudi Arabia’s policies and the crown prince’s aggressive steps to silence his critics. And now there are calls on Capitol Hill for the U.S. to halt arms sales to the kingdom, and Khashoggi’s disappearance could galvanize more opposition from lawmakers and pressure Trump to rethink his relations with Saudi Arabia.

Trump on Thursday pronounced U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia “excellent” and said he doesn’t want to scuttle arms deals with Riyadh because it means tens of millions of dollars pouring into the U.S. economy. He said the kingdom would simply buy the weapons from Russia or China instead.

“If it turns out to be as bad as it might be, there are certainly other ways of handling this situation,” he said without elaborating.

Much of how the U.S. responds will depend on whether evidence surfaces that proves Saudi Arabia is responsible for Khashoggi’s death.

Trump will have to craft a “calibrated response,” said Jon Alterman, who directs the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “He doesn’t like that approach. The president likes complete wins.”

The close ties between the Trump White House and the kingdom were in part forged by a friendship between two young princes: Last spring, Kushner and the crown prince met formally for the first time as a late-season snow fell outside the White House.

The two men — both in their 30s, both trusted aides of older, familial leaders — struck a bond. As their countries’ chief negotiators on Israeli-Palestinian peace, Kushner and the Saudi prince were both looking to make a name for themselves on the world stage and consulted with each other frequently over the following months.

Kushner championed Crown Prince Mohammed to the president and senior foreign policy officials, some of whom expressed wariness at the embrace of MBS, as he is known in diplomatic circles.

The two men’s relationship also played a key role in Riyadh becoming the unlikely first stop on Trump’s maiden international trip in May 2017. Trump, despite endorsing a travel ban on Muslims during his campaign, became the first U.S. president to make his official first trip to an Islamic nation.

Relations between the two countries are complex because they are entwined on energy, military, economic and intelligence issues. The Trump administration has aggressively courted the Saudis for support of its Middle East agenda to counter Iranian influence, fight extremism and forge peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

“We want to have a relationship with Saudi Arabia. They’re a strategic partner. They’re a mortal enemy of the Iranians. They’re helping us on terrorism,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump supporter and top member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“Having said all that, if this did happen — and it’s increasingly likely that something bad happened to this man at the hands of the Saudi government — that shows contempt for us. That’s disrespectful to us. It puts people like me in a box who’ve been one of the leading champions of the relationship.”

It’s not just Graham who’s in a box. It’s also Trump, who has long-standing business ties to Saudi Arabia.

Jeff Prescott, who was senior director for the Middle East at the National Security Council during the Obama administration, said that a reassessment of the U.S. relationship with Saudi Arabia is overdue and that Trump should raise U.S. complaints with Saudi leaders.

“What the Trump administration has given Saudi Arabia is a green light to pursue any policy,” said Prescott, now executive director of National Security Action, a group of former officials opposed to the Trump administration. “The key question is whether Republicans will have the courage to force the administration to have a reckoning of the relationship.”

He said Kushner’s project to forge peace between Israel and the Palestinians also could be in jeopardy.

“There is no question that a rift with Saudi Arabia — or even relations strained by pressure from Congress — would make an already bleak prospect even less likely,” Prescott said.

In Congress, there is a push for sanctions under a human rights law, and lawmakers are questioning American support for the Saudi-led bombing campaign against Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen. The U.S. has raised concerns previously about heavy civilian casualties caused by the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., voiced doubt there would be support in Congress for another arms sale to Saudi Arabia — though lawmakers haven’t blocked sales before. He also called for at least a temporary halt in U.S. military support for the Saudi bombing campaign in Yemen. Murphy tweeted that if Saudi Arabia is found complicit in Khashoggi’s death, it should be viewed as a “fundamental break in our relationship with Saudi Arabia.”

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Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan rejects the Saudi Arabian government's official account of the killing of Saudi-American journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a widely publicised address before the Turkish parliament.