‘Do this outside’: New lurid claims over how Saudi Arabia’s Jamal Khashoggi presumed death

Show Caption Hide Caption Pence on Khashoggi: Important world know the truth Vice President Mike Pence says it is important for the 'world to know the truth' when it comes to finding out what happened to Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. (Oct. 16)

WASHINGTON – Amid disturbing new details about the suspected slaying of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, the Trump administration said Wednesday that it would give the Saudi government more time to complete its investigation.

"It’s reasonable to give them a handful of days more to complete it so they get it right," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters as he prepared to return to Washington from a series of hastily arranged meetings in Saudi Arabia and Turkey to confront the growing diplomatic crisis.

His remarks came the same day the pro-government Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak published a lurid account of what it said was Khashoggi’s slaying. The newspaper said it reviewed an audio recording of Khashoggi’s murder in which Saudi Consul General Mohammed al-Otaibi could be heard telling those allegedly torturing Khashoggi: “Do this outside; you’re going to get me in trouble.” One of the torturers replied: “Shut up if you want to live when you return to (Saudi) Arabia,” according to the report.

The newspaper said Khashoggi was tortured and then dismembered while still alive. The Saudi who cut Khashoggi’s body up was advised to put on earphones and listen to music, according to the newspaper, which cited government security sources. The execution lasted seven minutes, the newspaper said.

The New York Times later confirmed the Turkish newspaper’s report of the audio recording, citing an unnamed senior Turkish official.

Turkish crime scene investigators searched al-Otaibi's official residence Wednesday, according to the Associated Press and other media outlets. His home is about 1.2 miles from the main consulate office where officials believe Khashoggi was killed.

Turkish officials said they were blocked from searching the consul’s home on Tuesday because Saudi officials said the consul’s family was still there. Al-Otaibi and his family have since left Turkey for Saudi Arabia, according to multiple media reports.

Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist who wrote critically of the kingdom and royal family for The Washington Post, has been missing since entering the consulate on Oct. 2.

Pompeo's visit to Turkey's capital for talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan followed his visit to Saudi Arabia, where he met with Saudi King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, over Khashoggi's disappearance.

Pompeo rejected assertions that he was giving Saudi leaders “the benefit of the doubt” in accepting their denials of any involvement in Khashoggi’s disappearance and presumed murder.

“It’s not about benefit of the doubt,” Pompeo said, adding that he agreed to give the Saudi government “a few more days” to complete their own investigation. Then he and others in the Trump administration would judge whether it was credible, he said.

Asked whether the Saudi inquiry would be done in a matter of days, Pompeo said: "That’s what they’ve indicated they need. And then we’ll get to see it. We'll evaluate this on a factual straight-up basis."

For the past two weeks, Turkish security officials have claimed in various leaks to state-run media and some U.S. outlets that they have audio and video evidence indicating Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate. Police investigators searching the consulate on Tuesday also said, without elaborating, that they found evidence Khashoggi was killed there. Saudi Arabia’s leadership has denied the allegations, and Saudi officials have not responded to repeated requests for comment.

In addition to meeting the Turkish president, Pompeo met Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. The talks lasted about 40 minutes. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert ‎said Pompeo expressed concern over Khashoggi’s disappearance and “reiterated the United States’ willingness to assist Turkey in its investigation.”

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Before leaving Riyadh, Pompeo said the Saudis assured him that a fully “transparent investigation” would take place and that there would be “no exceptions on who they would hold accountable,” including members of the governing royal family.

Turkey's Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told the state-run Anadolu Agency on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia has accepted a request for a search of the Saudi consul's official residence in Istanbul but has not yet given its final consent.

Reports this week have said the Saudis may also decide to acknowledge Khashoggi’s slaying, perhaps suggesting it was part of a botched interrogation. Khashoggi had moved to Washington last year because he feared retribution for his criticism of Saudi Arabia amid a crackdown on dissent that has jailed hundreds.

Still, President Donald Trump has appeared to give the Saudis the benefit of the doubt amid rising global condemnation. He told Fox Business Network on Wednesday that he would not rupture America’s long-standing alliance with Saudi Arabia despite mounting international and domestic pressure.

“We’re not going to walk away from Saudi Arabia,” Trump said. “I don’t want to do that.”

Trump implied that only if the top echelon of Saudi's royal family were implicated would he find it necessary to punish Saudi Arabia. "I hope that the king and the crown prince didn’t know about it. That’s a big factor in my eyes," he said.

Before a meeting with his Cabinet secretaries in the Oval Office, Trump emphasized Saudi Arabia's importance as a U.S. ally. He also questioned the existence of the audio and video recordings that Turkish officials say implicate Saudi Arabia.

“We have asked for it, if it exists," Trump said when asked about the tapes. "I’m not sure yet that it exists, probably does, possibly does."

Trump said he spoke Tuesday with both the Saudi king and crown prince, and both men emphatically disputed involvement in Khashoggi's disappearance. He said the Saudis were being presumed guilty and compared the situation to allegations of sexual assault against Brett Kavanaugh, his recently confirmed Supreme Court nominee: "We just went through that with Justice Kavanaugh, and he was innocent all the way as far as I'm concerned."

The U.S. and Saudi Arabia have a longstanding relationship that extends to cooperation on oil production, combating terrorism and weapons sales. Trump visited the country as part of his first foreign trip as president.

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