Published
5 years agoon
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey has summoned the Saudi ambassador to request the kingdom’s “full cooperation” in an investigation into the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who Turkish officials say was killed while visiting the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.
Turkish officials say the Washington Post contributor was killed at the consulate and that his body was later removed from the building, without providing evidence. Erdogan has said he would await the results of an investigation.
Saudi officials have denied the allegations as baseless. The consulate insists that Khashoggi left its premises, contradicting Turkish officials.
The Saudi writer spent last year in the U.S in self-imposed exile, after he fled the kingdom amid a crackdown on intellectuals and activists who criticized the policies of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Khashoggi’s disappearance could put pressure on the Saudi crown prince, who has promoted an image of himself as a reformer and a reliable Western ally.
“Opposition to the young crown prince in the ruling family will most likely grow,” warned Ayham Kamel, the head of Mideast and North Africa research at the Eurasia Group. “There are elements of the Al Saud family that are convinced that the prince is reckless and compromising the security of the country.”
Turkey’s state-run news agency, quoting police, has said 15 Saudi nationals arrived in Istanbul on board two planes and were inside the consulate building when Khashoggi went missing. The private DHA agency said the planes, which it identified as a two Gulfstreams belonging to a Riyadh-based company that hires private jets, landed at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport on the day Khashoggi vanished.
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