Here are all the developments on Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, from October 10 until November 19.

Click here for the latest updates in the Khashoggi case

Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi entered Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul on October 2 to obtain a document certifying he divorced his ex-wife so he could remarry. He was killed inside the consulate.

Turkish sources have told media outlets they believe the killing was a “premeditated murder”.

Saudi officials have countered that claim, insisting Khashoggi died in a “brawl”, after initially claiming he had left the building before vanishing.

Al Jazeera started a live updates page on October 10. Here are all the developments from October 10 to November 19:

Monday, November 19

France to decide soon on sanctions

France will decide soon whether to impose sanctions on individuals linked to Khashoggi’s murder, its Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has said.

“We are working very closely with Germany at this moment … and we will decide ourselves a certain number of sanctions very quickly over what we know (about the murder),” Le Drian told Europe 1 radio on Monday when asked whether Paris would follow Berlin in imposing travel bans on the accused Saudi individuals.

“But we believe that we need to go beyond that because the whole truth needs to be known,” he added.

Turkey discusses Khashoggi murder with UN chief

The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has held talks with Mevlut Cavusoglu, Turkey‘s foreign minister, over Khashoggi’s killing.

“They discussed Yemen, Syria, Cyprus, as well as the murder of Jamal Khashoggi,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters.

On a possible UN inquiry into Khashoggi, he said: “We have not received any formal request from the Turkish side.”

As Cavusoglu left the UN after meeting Guterres, he was asked if he requested an international investigation. “We discussed all the aspects of this,” he said.

Four prominent rights groups – Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders – last month urged Turkey to ask the UN to investigate the disappearance of Khashoggi.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman delivered his annual address to the kingdom’s Shura Council, a top governmental advisory body, following a nationwide tour with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

In the highly anticipated address, the 82-year-old monarch lauded his country’s judiciary and public prosecution for “carrying out their duty in the service of justice”, without directly referring to the killing of The Washington Post columnist, Khashoggi.

Elsewhere in the short speech, the king reiterated his support for the UN efforts to end the war in Yemen, and said that the Palestinian issue was a “top priority for the kingdom”.

The expected address came as members of the United States Congress renewed its calls to condemn the kingdom following an assessment by the CIA that the Prince Mohammed personally ordered the murder of Khashoggi.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud addresses the Shura Council in Riyadh [Reuters]

Germany imposes Schengen-wide entry ban on 18 Saudis

Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas says Berlin has banned 18 Saudi nationals from entering Europe’s border-free Schengen zone because they are suspected to be connected to the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.

Maas told reporters in Brussels on Monday that Germany issued the ban for the 26-nation zone in close coordination with France, which is part of the Schengen area, and Britain, which is not.

He says “as before, there are more questions than answers in this case, with the crime itself and who is behind it”.

Maas says the 18 are Saudis who are “allegedly connected to this crime” but gave no further information.

In Berlin, his office said they were not able to release the names due to German privacy protections.

Sunday, November 18

‘No reason’ to listen to Khashoggi murder recording: Trump

US President Donald Trump said on Fox News there’s “no reason” for him to listen to an audio recording of Khashoggi’s murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Trump confirmed the US has the recording, which was provided by Turkey, but told “Fox News Sunday” that “I don’t want to hear the tape, no reason for me to hear the tape”.

He said being briefed was enough and he did not want to hear the audio because it’s a “suffering tape, it’s a terrible tape” in the interview recorded on Friday.

The killing was “very violent, vicious and terrible”, Trump said.

Later on Sunday, Trump said Prince Mohammed, also known as MBS, told him directly he had nothing to do with Khashoggi’s killing. Trump also said he wonders: “Will anybody really know?”

Earlier, President Trump had said that his administration will release a full report in the next two days about the death of Jamal Khashoggi.

Trump told reporters on Saturday that the report will include information on “who did it”.

“We’ll be having a very full report over the next two days, probably Monday or Tuesday,” he said.

Saturday, November 17

No ‘final conclusion’ on Khashoggi killing: US

The US government has not reached a final conclusion over Khashoggi’s killing, the US State Department said.

“Recent reports indicating that the US government has made a final conclusion are inaccurate,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement on Saturday.

The statement followed reports in the US media that the CIA had held Prince Mohammed responsible for the October 2 killing.

“There remain numerous unanswered questions with respect to the murder of Mr Khashoggi,” Nauert said in her statement.

“The State Department will continue to seek all relevant facts. In the meantime, we will continue to consult Congress, and work with other nations to hold accountable those involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.”

Will US punish MBS over Khashoggi murder?

The Washington Post says the CIA has concluded that Prince Mohammed did give the order to kill the journalist.

The American spy agency is not commenting on the reports. Meanwhile, the Saudi embassy in Washington says the CIA assessment is false.

If not, the CIA finding is the first direct confirmation of the crown prince’s involvement after Turkey said the order to kill came from the highest level in the kingdom.

Where does the finding leave Saudi-US relations? And where does it leave the fate of bin Salman?

Watch Inside Story below.

Trump briefed on Khashoggi murder by CIA, Pompeo

President Trump has been briefed on Khashoggi’s murder after a CIA assessment that MBS ordered the killing, the White House said.

Trump discussed the CIA assessment by phone with the agency’s director, Gina Haspel, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters on Saturday.

The CIA believes the Saudi crown prince, the country’s de-facto ruler, ordered Khashoggi’s killing.

Speaking to reporters earlier on Saturday, Trump had reiterated that he had been told that MBS did not play a role in the journalist’s killing.

“We haven’t been briefed yet,” Trump said.

Trump and top administration officials have said Saudi Arabia should be held to account for any involvement in Khashoggi’s death and have imposed sanctions on 17 Saudis for their role in the killing.

But they have also stressed the importance of Washington’s ties with Riyadh, even while US Congress members have called on the administration to punish Saudi Arabia over the murder.

Pence says US will hold Khashoggi killers to account

US Vice President Mike Pence has said the US will hold the murderers of Jamal Khashoggi to account, following reports in US media that Prince Mohammed ordered the killing.

“The United States is determined to hold all of those accountable who are responsible for that murder,” Pence said on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Papua New Guinea.

The vice president described the murder of the Saudi journalist as an “atrocity” and an “affront to a free and independent press” but declined to comment on classified information.

Pence spoke after American media outlets, citing US intelligence officials, reported that the CIA had concluded that MBS was involved in the plot to kill Khashoggi.

“We are going to follow the facts,” said Pence, adding that the US wanted to preserve a “strong and historic partnership with Saudi Arabia”.

Friday, November 16

CIA says Saudi crown prince ordered Khashoggi’s murder: reports

The CIA has concluded that Prince Mohammed ordered the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul, US media reported on Friday, a finding that contradicts Saudi government assertions that he was not involved.

According to the Washington Post, which first reported the CIA conclusion, US officials expressed confidence in the agency’s assessment, which is the most definitive to date linking MBS to the killing and complicates President Trump’s efforts to preserve ties with one of the closest US allies in the region.

Both The Washington Post and the Associated Press news agency cited unnamed officials familiar with the CIA conclusion.

The accuracy of the reports could not be immediately verified.

Read more here.

Turkey has second audio recording of Khashoggi killing: Hurriyet

The “hit-squad” sent from Saudi Arabia to murder Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul planned out their assassination methodically, contradicting key findings from the Saudi public prosecutor’s office, a Turkish newspaper has reported.

Abdulkadir Selvi, a columnist at Hurriyet, said Turkish authorities had a 15-minute audio recording where the Saudi team could be heard discussing and reviewing their plan, and reminding each other of their duties.

Selvi said the strongest evidence of the premeditated nature of the killing could be heard in a seven minute audio recording he reported on last month. In that recording, Khashoggi’s “desperate attempts to survive” are heard.

Funeral prayers have been held in absentia for Khashoggi at the Grand Mosque in Mecca and Prophet Muhammad’s mosque in the Saudi city of Medina, two of the holiest places of Islam.

The prayer, known as “Salat al-Ghaib” or “prayer for the absent” (performed when the body of the deceased has not been found), was offered at dawn with the participation of Salah, Jamal Khashoggi’s son.

Thursday, November 15

‘A price needs to be paid’: US Senate bill targets Saudi Arabia

A bipartisan group of US senators introduced legislation seeking to punish Saudi Arabia over Khashoggi’s murder and the kingdom’s role in the devastating war in Yemen.

The move came hours after the United States slapped economic sanctions on 17 Saudis allegedly involved in the killing of Khashoggi inside the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul.

If the bill were to become law, it would suspend weapon sales to Saudi Arabia and prohibit US refuelling of Saudi coalition aircraft conducting air raids in Yemen.

It also would impose sanctions on anyone blocking humanitarian access in Yemen and anyone supporting the Houthi rebels.

Read more here.

US places sanctions on 17 Saudis

The US has placed economic sanctions on 17 Saudis allegedly involved in Khashoggi’s murder, including top aide of MBS, Saud al-Qahtani.

The new measures, which follow travel bans already in place, freeze any assets the 17 may have in the US and prohibit any Americans from doing business with them.

“The Saudi officials we are sanctioning were involved in the abhorrent killing of Jamal Khashoggi,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Thursday.

“These individuals who targeted and brutally killed a journalist who resided and worked in the United States must face consequences for their actions.”

The sanctions will be implemented under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, which targets the perpetrators of serious human rights abuses and corruption. The announcement was unusual for Washington, which rarely imposes sanctions on Riyadh.

The move came after Riyadh’s public prosecutor said five out of 11 suspects are facing a possible death sentence in the case.

READ MORE: What is the Magnitsky Act? How does it apply to Khashoggi’s case?

France: Saudi probe proceeding in right direction

France’s foreign ministry has said the probe by Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor into Khashoggi’s killing is moving in the right direction.

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Saudi’s deputy public prosecutor said earlier that Riyadh was seeking the death penalty for five of the 11 suspects charged in connection to the case.

“We ask that the responsibilities are clearly established and that the perpetrators answer them in a real trial,” Agnes von der Muhll, France’s foreign ministry spokesperson, told reporters in a daily briefing.

“The Saudi authorities’ announcement that the 18 people arrested in connection with the investigation goes in the right direction.”

Although France has warned of possible sanctions once the truth is established, the French reaction has been relatively guarded. Paris is keen to retain its influence with Riyadh and protect commercial relations spanning energy, finance and military weapons sales.

Saudi foreign minister: Khashoggi murder should not be politicised

Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, said Khashoggi’s killing is now a legal case and should not be politicised after the public prosecutor said it would seek the death penalty for five suspects.

“The politicisation of the issue contributes to a fissure in the Islamic world while the kingdom seeks the unity of the Islamic world,” he told reporters in the capital, Riyadh.

Last month, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had called the killing a “political murder“, adding that international investigators should be included in the probe.

Al-Jubeir reiterated that MBS had “absolutely nothing to do” with the murder, while after being asked about possible international sanctions in response to the case, he said there was a difference between sanctioning individuals and holding the Saudi government responsible.

Turkey not satisfied with Saudi prosecutor’s comments on Khashoggi

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said his country was not satisfied with the Saudi Attorney General’s latest account of events leading up to the murder of Khashoggi.

Shaalan al-Shaalan, the Saudi deputy public prosecutor, told reporters earlier in the day that the team that killed Khashoggi had been sent to repatriate him.

Cavusoglu reiterated that the murder was premeditated and that equipment was brought into Turkey to dismember the body.

He repeated Ankara’s demand that the 15-man team involved in his murder be “tried in accordance with Turkish law” and said that those ordering and carrying out Khashoggi’s killing “need to be uncovered”.

“Turkish law is applicable in this case, even though the murder took place in the Saudi consulate,” he said.

Saudi seeks death penalty for five people in Khashoggi murder

Saudi Arabia is seeking the death penalty for five people involved in the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

Shaalan al-Shaalan, the kingdom’s deputy public prosecutor, told a news conference in Riyadh that five men ordered the drugging and dismemberment of Khashoggi after “talks with him failed” inside the country’s consulate in Istanbul.

He added that MBS was not implicated in the gruesome murder that caused global outrage.

Read more here.

Wednesday, November 14

Lindsey Graham: Bin Salman ‘unstable and unreliable’

US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham upped his rhetoric against MBS on Tuesday, saying the Saudi crown prince is “unstable and unreliable”, Bloomberg reported.

Graham, who has been a vocal critic of bin Salman since the murder of Saudi writer, Jamal Khashoggi, said he doesn’t see the “situation getting fixed as long as he’s [bin Salman] is around”.

“I am of the opinion that the current leadership, the MBS leadership, has been a disaster for the relationship and the region, and I will find it very difficult to do business as usual with somebody who’s been this unstable,” he said as quoted by Bloomberg.

Graham said there is still no plan in place, but he and other senators are discussing sanctions against Saudi Arabia over Khashoggi’s death.

US politicians to push for crackdown on Saudi Arabia

The US Senate may vote within weeks on legislation to punish Saudi Arabia over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and the devastating war in Yemen.

Senator Bob Corker, the Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the Senate could vote before the end of the year on a resolution seeking to cut off all assistance to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen.

He said it was also possible that measures to prevent arms sales to Riyadh would make it to the Senate floor.

“Senators are looking for some way to show Saudi Arabia the disdain they have for what has happened with the journalist, but also concerns about the way Yemen has gone,” said Corker.

Corker said his staff had asked that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defense Secretary James Mattis and CIA Director Gina Haspel come to the Capitol as soon as late November for a classified briefing to address concerns about Yemen and Khashoggi’s death.

It has been reported the CIA director has listened to the audio recording of Khashoggi’s killing.

US official: Recording doesn’t link Saudi prince to Khashoggi murder

President Trump’s national security adviser says people who have listened to an audio recording of the killing of a Saudi journalist do not think it implicates MBS.

John Bolton told reporters at a summit in Singapore that he has not personally listened to the tape. But he says those who have do not think it links Khashoggi’s death to the crown prince.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he shared the audio recordings with Saudi Arabia and other nations, including the US, Britain, France, Germany and Canada.

Tuesday, November 13

‘Saudi crown prince tried to persuade Israel to start war in Gaza’: report

MBS tried to persuade Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to start a war in Gaza to take the focus off the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Middle East Eye reported on Tuesday.

According to sources that spoke to the website, a war in Gaza was one of the measures the kingdom considered to have international attention shift away from Khashoggi case.

The sources added that other options included bribing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by buying military equipment from Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said recordings related to the killing of Jamal Khashoggi , which Ankara has shared with Western allies, are “appalling”, and shocked a Saudi intelligence officer who listened to them, according to local Turkish media.

“We played the recordings regarding this murder to everyone who wanted them from us. Our intelligence organisation did not hide anything. We played them to all who wanted them including the Saudis, the USA, France, Canada, Germany, Britain,” he said.

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“The recordings are really appalling. Indeed when the Saudi intelligence officer listened to the recordings he was so shocked he said: ‘This one must have taken heroin, only someone who takes heroin would do this’,” Erdogan added.

The Turkish president said that the murder of Khashoggi must have been ordered at the highest level of the Saudi government, but added that he did not think King Salman was responsible for the order.

“It must be revealed who gave them the order to murder,” Erdogan said, referring to a comment by MBS who previously said that the matter “will be clarified”.

Monday, November 12

A member of a Saudi assassination squad phoned a superior shortly after Jamal Khashoggi was murdered and told him “tell your boss” their mission had been accomplished, The New York Times reported.

Citing three people familiar with a recording of Khashoggi’s killing collected by Turkish intelligence, the newspaper said while he was not mentioned by name, US officials believe “your boss” was a reference to MBS.

US intelligence officials view the recording as some of the strongest evidence yet linking bin Salman to the murder, it said.

Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, one of 15 Saudis sent to Istanbul to target Khashoggi, made the phone call and spoke in Arabic, sources told the Times. Mutreb is a security officer who frequently travels with MBS.

Turkish intelligence officers told US officials they believe the call was made to one of bin Salman’s close aides.

Trudeau: Canada has heard Turkish recordings on Khashoggi’s killing

Canadian intelligence has listened to Turkish recordings of what happened to Jamal Khashoggi said Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, although Trudeau added that he himself had not listened to them.

“Canada’s intelligence agencies have been working very closely on this issue with Turkish intelligence and Canada has been fully briefed on what Turkey had to share and I had a conversation with Erdogan a couple of weeks ago and here in Paris we had brief exchanges and I thanked him for his strength in responding to the Khashoggi situation,” said Trudeau.

“We continue to be engaged with our allies on the investigation into accountability for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and we are in discussions with our like-minded allies as to the next steps with regard Saudi Arabia,” added Trudeau at a news conference in Paris on Monday.

About 200 people gathered in Istanbul to honour the memory of Khashoggi, demanding justice for his killing.

Supporters met on Sunday to talk and watch videos of eulogies for the Washington Post contributor, who was killed on October 2 inside Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul consulate, where he went to handle paperwork for his upcoming marriage. His fiancee was among the participants in the memorial.

Turan Kislakci, head of the Turkish-Arab Media Association (TAM), to which Khashoggi belonged, called for justice to be done “so that these barbaric tyrants can never do the same thing again”.

Yemeni human rights activist Tawakkol Karman, who won the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize for her participation in the Arab Spring uprisings, said the killing was reminiscent of crimes committed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group.

Saudi crown prince meets British special envoy: SPA

MBS has discussed bilateral relations with British Prime Minister Theresa May’s special envoy, Simon McDonald, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Monday.

McDonald’s talks in Riyadh come as British foreign minister Jeremy Hunt said he will visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on Monday to press for an end to the war in Yemen and to urge Saudi leaders to cooperate with an investigation into the murder of Khashoggi.

UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt visits Saudi Arabia to press Saudi leaders to cooperate with an investigation into Khashoggi’s murder.

The visit comes at a time when Riyadh is facing global criticism and potential sanctions over the killing.

Hunt, the first British minister to visit Saudi Arabia since Khashoggi’s murder, will call on the Saudi authorities to do more to deliver justice and accountability for his family.

“The international community remain united in horror and outrage at the brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi one month ago. It is clearly unacceptable that the full circumstances behind his murder still remain unclear,” he said.

Sunday, November 11

The head of investigations at the Turkish Daily Sabah newspaper has told Al Jazeera that Jamal Khashoggi’s last words were “I’m suffocating … Take this bag off my head, I’m claustrophobic”, according to an audio recording from inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Khashoggi suffocated to death while a plastic bag covered his head, Nazif Karaman told Al Jazeera.

Karaman said the murder lasted for about seven minutes, according to the recordings.

Saudi officials ‘discussed killing enemies’ a year before Khashoggi murder: report

A report by The New York Times has said that Saudi intelligence officials close to MBS met with businessmen in 2017 to discuss manoeuvres to sabotage Iran’s economy and broached the possibility of killing Iranian enemies of the kingdom.

During the meeting, Saudi officials asked the businessmen if they “conducted kinetics” – a term used to refer to assassinations – to kill Qassim Suleimani, the leader of the specialised Quds force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the paper reported

“Their discussions, more than a year before the killing of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, indicate that top Saudi officials have considered assassinations since the beginning of Prince Mohammed’s ascent,” wrote The Times.

Saturday, November 10

Trump and Macron say Saudi must give details on Khashoggi killing – report

US President Trump and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, agreed on Saturday that Saudi Arabia needs to shed full light on the events surrounding Khashoggi’s murder, Reuters news agency reported, citing a French presidency source.

The two leaders also said the issue should not be allowed to cause further destabilisation in the Middle East and that it could create an opportunity to find a political resolution to the war in Yemen, the official said.

Trump and Macron are in Paris to commemorate the end of World War I.

Turkey has given recordings on the killing of Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia, the US, Germany, France and Britain, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

Turkish sources have said previously that authorities have an audio recording purportedly documenting the murder.

Speaking before his departure to France to attend commemorations to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, Erdogan said Saudi Arabia knows the killer of Jamal Khashoggi is among a group of 15 people who arrived in Turkey one day ahead of the October 2 killing.

“We gave the tapes. We gave them to Saudi Arabia, to the United States, Germans, French and British, all of them. They have listened to all the conversations in them. They know,” Erdogan said.

Turkish police are ending the search for the Khashoggi’s body, but the criminal investigation into the Saudi journalist’s murder will continue, sources told Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera has learned on Friday that traces of acid were found at the Saudi consul-general’s residence in Istanbul, where the body was believed to be disposed of with the use of chemicals.

The residence is walking distance from the Saudi consulate, where Khashoggi was allegedly killed by a team of Saudi officers and officials.

Istanbul’s chief prosecutor said on October 31 that Khashoggi was strangled as soon as he entered the consulate and that his body was dismembered, in the first official comments on the case.

Friday, November 9

Norway suspends arms export licenses to Saudi Arabia

Norway announced on Friday that it was suspending new licenses for arms exports to Saudi Arabia following recent developments in the Gulf kingdom and the situation in Yemen.

“We have decided that in the present situation, we will not give new licenses for the export of defence material or multipurpose goods for military use to Saudi Arabia,” Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said in a statement.

While Khashoggi’s murder was not mentioned, the statement said the decision had been taken following “a broad assessment of recent developments in Saudi Arabia and the unclear situation in Yemen”.

The announcement came a week after Norway’s foreign minister summoned the Saudi ambassador to Oslo to protest Khashoggi’s assassination.

Germany said last month that it would halt its arms exports to Saudi Arabia until the killing of Khashoggi was explained.

Khashoggi’s fiancee shocked by reports his body was dissolved

Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggi’s fiancee, has expressed “shock and sadness” over reports suggesting that his body may have been dissolved with chemicals.

Cengiz said on Twitter late Thursday that Khashoggi’s killers had deprived his loved ones of conducting funeral prayers and burying him in the holy city of Medina as he had wished.

In a message to The Associated Press on Friday, Cengiz said she had not received any information from officials to confirm the reports.

I'm unable to express my sorrow to learn about dissolving your body Jamal! They killed you and chopped up your body, depriving me and your family of conducting your funeral prayer and burying you in Madinah as wished.

Are these killers and those behind it human beings?

Oh my God! pic.twitter.com/U5OKS5DkVb — Hatice Cengiz / خديجة (@mercan_resifi) November 8, 2018

Thursday, November 8

Bin Salman: Khashoggi’s killers would be punished

MBS told a group of American evangelical leaders earlier this month that those responsible for Khashoggi’s killing would be punished.

He also stressed that the crisis must not shift focus away from Iran’s threat to the region and the world, according to the delegation’s organiser.

In an article posted on Axios, a news website, Barak Ravid of Israel’s Channel 10 news quotes Joel Rosenberg as saying bin Salman accused his “enemies” of exploiting Khashoggi’s murder, which he called a “heinous act”.

Axios: MBS met US evangelicals, said Khashoggi’s killers would be punished

MBS told a group of American evangelical leaders on November 1 that those responsible for Khashoggi’s killing would be punished but stressed that the crisis must not shift focus away from Iran’s threat to the region and the world, according to the delegation’s organiser.

In an article posted on Axios, a news website, Barak Ravid of Israel’s Channel 10 news quotes Joel

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Rosenberg as saying bin Salman accused his “enemies” of exploiting Khashoggi’s murder, which he called a “heinous act”.

The meeting, which lasted some two hours, was scheduled before the Khashoggi crisis erupted.

A source in the Turkish attorney general’s office told Al Jazeera that the investigative team found traces of hydrofluoric acid and other chemicals inside a well at the Saudi consul general’s home in Istanbul.

The source said the killers dissolved the journalist’s dismembered body in acid in one of the rooms at Consul General Mohammed al-Otaibi’s residence.

Al Jazeera’s Andrew Simmons, reporting from Istanbul, said the residence was searched by Turkish investigators two weeks after the killing.

“It would appear, according to the source that during that two week period, acid was used to dispose of the dismembered body of Jamal Khashoggi.”

Wednesday, November 7

Israeli spyware technology may have been used to track down, kill Khashoggi: Snowden

Software made by Israeli-based cybersecurity firm NSO Group Technologies may have been used to track down Khashoggi, fugitive US whistle-blower Edward Snowden told an Israeli audience via video conference.

Snowden said the phone of one of Khashoggi’s friends, Omar Abdulaziz – who lives in exile in Canada – had been infected with NSO’s Pegasus spyware. The whistle-blower, who now lives in Russia, said the software allowed Saudis to collect information about Khashoggi through Abdulaziz.

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“The Saudis, of course, knew that Khashoggi was going to go to the consulate, as he got an appointment. But how did they know his intention and plans?”

“[NSO Group] is the worst of the worst in selling these burglary tools, that are being actively used to violate the human rights of dissidents, opposition figures, activists, to some pretty bad players,” Snowden said, “but they are not alone.”

Trump: ‘Much stronger opinion next week’

US President Trump has said he will have a “much stronger opinion” on the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi “over the next week”.

Trump said he is working with the US Congress, Turkey and Saudi Arabia on solving the October 2 killing at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

“I am forming a very strong opinion,” the US president said during a press conference at the White House.

Saudi king issues pardons, unveils projects on domestic tour

Saudi Arabia’s king has begun a domestic tour with a first stop in the conservative heartland of Qassim province, where he pardoned prisoners serving time on finance charges and announced 16bn riyals – about $4.27bn – in new projects.

This is King Salman’s first such tour since he ascended to the throne in 2015 and comes as the kingdom faces international pressure following the killing of writer Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul last month.

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The state-run news agency reported on Wednesday that the government would pay debts of up to 1m riyals, or $267,000, on behalf of each of the pardoned prisoners.

Tuesday, November 6

CIA chief has seen all evidence in relation to Khashoggi murder – source

A Turkish security source has told Al Jazeera that CIA Director Gina Haspel has seen all the evidence related to Khashoggi’s killing.

The evidence proves the operation was carried out on orders from the highest level of leadership in Saudi Arabia, the source added.

Haspel was in Turkey last week to review evidence before briefing US President Trump in Washington, DC.

Turkish sources also said that Saudi Arabia would pay “blood money” or compensation to Khashoggi’s family and his fiancee.

Turkish media have reported that staff at Saudi Arabia‘s consulate in Istanbul tried to dismantle security cameras to help cover up the murder of Khashoggi.

The pro-government Sabah newspaper reported that the Saudis tried to rip out the camera inside the consulate on October 2, the day Khashoggi was murdered.

They also tried to tamper with cameras at the police security booth outside the building.

According to the report, at 1am on October 6, a consulate member staff went into the police security post outside the Saudi consulate to access the video system.

Sabah reported that the staff member put a digital lock code into the system, which did not dismantle any cameras but rather was intended to prevent access to any videos showing movement at the entrance, including Khashoggi’s arrival at the consulate.

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Al Jazeera’s Andrew Simmons reporting from Istanbul said that their attempt was, in any case, irrelevant because the police had already deciphered the coding and accessed the system, retrieving a copy of the video well ahead of the attempt of tampering.

“All of this demonstrates, according to Turkish officials, in terms of the … whole set of procedures, that there was an effort by the Saudi Arabian consulate to once again tamper with evidence,” Simmons said.

“This follows a pattern of leaks which demonstrate beyond any doubt, according to the Turks, that the Saudis weren’t out to investigate a murder, they were out to cover it up.”

Monday, November 5

Khashoggi’s sons appeal for return of his body

The sons of the slain Saudi journalist issued an appeal for the return of their father’s body and said they wanted to return to Saudi Arabia to bury him.

In an interview with CNN, Salah and Abdullah Khashoggi said without their father’s body, their family is unable to grieve and deal with the emotional burden of their father’s death.

“It’s not a normal situation, it’s not a normal death at all. All what we want right now is to bury him in Al-Baqi [cemetery] in Medina [Saudi Arabia] with the rest of his family,” Salah Khashoggi said.

“I talked about that with the Saudi authorities and I just hope that it happens soon.”

Salah Khashoggi on October 24 met the crown prince and King Salman in Riyadh to receive condolences along with other Khashoggi family members. Salah departed for Washington a day later, and his CNN interview was his first public comment since then.

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He said King Salman assured him those involved in Khashoggi’s murder would be brought to justice.

“We just need to make sure that he rests in peace,” Salah Khashoggi said of his father. “Until now, I still can’t believe that he’s dead. It’s not sinking in with me emotionally,” he said, adding there had been a lot of “misinformation” about the circumstances of the death.

Salah said accusations that his father was a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood organisation were not true.

Asked how Khashoggi should be remembered, Salah replied, “As a moderate man who has common values with everyone … a man who loved his country, who believed so much in it and its potential.”

“Jamal was never a dissident. He believed in the monarchy, that it is the thing that is keeping the country together. And he believed in the transformation that it is going through.”

Countries gathered at the UN in Geneva to review Saudi Arabia’s rights record as it faces a torrent of international condemnation over Khashoggi’s murder.

Monday’s so-called Universal Periodic Review – which all 193 UN member states must undergo every four years – is likely to also focus on Saudi Arabia’s role in Yemen’s brutal civil war. Washington, which has long backed the Saudi-led coalition, called last week for an end to air attacks in the country.

The Saudi delegation in Geneva will be headed by Bandar Al Aiban, who serves as the head of the country’s Human Rights Commission.

The delegation will present a report over the country’s efforts to live up to its international human rights obligations and will respond to questions and comments from countries around the world on its record.

Activists are urging countries not to hold back.

“UN member states must end their deafening silence on Saudi Arabia and do their duty of scrutinising the cruelty in the kingdom in order to prevent further outrageous human rights violations in the country and in Yemen,” Samah Hadid, Amnesty International’s Middle East director of campaigns, said in a statement.

“The Saudi government’s long-standing repression of critics, exemplified by the extrajudicial execution of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last month, has until recently been wilfully ignored by UN member states.”

A number of countries have already submitted lists of detailed questions for the review, including direct questions from Britain, Austria and Switzerland on the Khashoggi case.

Sweden, meanwhile, is planning to ask: “What measures will be taken to improve the respect for the freedom of expression and the safety of journalists in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia?”

US lawmakers to push for crackdown on Saudi Arabia

The US Senate may vote within weeks on legislation to punish Saudi Arabia over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and the devastating war in Yemen.

Senator Bob Corker, the Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the Senate could vote before the end of the year on a resolution seeking to cut off all assistance to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen.

He said it was also possible that measures to prevent arms sales to Riyadh would make it to the Senate floor.

“Senators are looking for some way to show Saudi Arabia the disdain they have for what has happened, with the journalist, but also concerns about the way Yemen has gone,” said Corker.

Sunday, November 4

US to hold Khashoggi’s killers ‘ accountable’ but ‘ensure’ partnership with Saudi Arabia

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has told Fox News the US will hold all those responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi “accountable … while ensuring the strategic relationship with Saudi Arabia”.

Pompeo listed Saudi Arabia’s ability to “deny” Iran “the ability to threaten America and Israel” as one of the reasons to maintain a strategic relationship with the kingdom, whose crown prince is under scrutiny over suspicions of his role in Khashoggi’s murder.

The US and Iran face a renewed sense of animosity as a second round of sanctions on Tehran begin on Monday.

In May this year, the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from a landmark 2015 multinational nuclear deal with Iran.

US President Trump has warned of consequences for those responsible for Khashoggi’s killing.

However, the Trump administration has been reluctant to suggest severe sanctions, such as cancelling arms deals with Saudi Arabia, citing the impact on the US economy.

Saturday, November 3

Rights group ‘renames’ street outside Saudi embassy in London after slain journalist

Amnesty International renamed the street outside Saudi Arabia’s embassy in London as “Khashoggi Street” with a mock sign to mark the one month anniversary since the journalist’s killing in Turkey.

Today, on the UN’s International day to end impunity for crimes against journalists, @AmnestyUK put up a mock street sign reading "Khashoggi Street" in front of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in London #JamalKhasoggi #SaudiArabia pic.twitter.com/dWBtA5Cgog — Sherine Tadros (@SherineT) November 2, 2018

“The whole world has been shocked by this grotesque killing and it’s vital that we don’t let the outrage fade away without justice,” said Amnesty International’s UK Director Kate Allen.

“We need to see Jamal Khashoggi’s killers brought to justice – not only those who carried out the murder but those who ordered it and knew it was about to happen.”

Writers, artists and activists call on UN to probe killing

Meryl Streep, JK Rowling and Zadie Smith joined more than 100 artists, writers and activists in signing an open letter calling on the United Nations to launch an independent investigation into the murder of Khashoggi.

Addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the letter – which came on the international day to end impunity for crimes against journalists – was put together by Pen America, a non-profit that works to defend freedom of expression.

“The violent murder of a prominent journalist and commentator on foreign soil is a grave violation of human rights and a disturbing escalation of the crackdown on dissent in Saudi Arabia, whose government in recent years has jailed numerous writers, journalists, human rights advocates and lawyers in a sweeping assault on free expression and association,” reads the letter.

“The murder of a journalist inside a diplomatic facility would constitute nothing less than an act of state terror intended to intimidate journalists, dissidents and exiled critics the world over,” the letter reads.

Friday, November 2

Erdogan: Order came from highest levels of Saudi government

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the order for Khashoggi’s killing came from the “highest levels” of the Saudi government but said he does not believe King Salman ordered the hit.

In an opinion piece in the Washington Post, Erdogan said: “we must reveal the identities of the puppet masters behind Khashoggi’s killing”. He added that Turkey has “moved heaven and earth” to bring the truth to light.

“We are shocked and saddened by the efforts of certain Saudi officials to cover up Khashoggi’s premeditated murder, rather than serve the cause of justice, as our friendship would require,” Erdogan said.

After criticising Saudi Arabia’s consul general and the kingdom’s public prosecutor who recently met with Turkish officials, Erdogan adopted a more conciliatory tone, stressing that Turkey and Saudi Arabia continued to enjoy friendly relations and that he had “no reasons to believe that this murder reflected Saudi Arabia’s official policy”.

The Turkish president again expressed dismay that Saudi Arabia has still not revealed who ordered the assassination, along with the location of Khashoggi’s remains or the identity of the attackers’ local collaborator.

“Some seem to hope this ‘problem’ will go away in time. But we will keep asking those questions, which are crucial to the criminal investigation in Turkey, but also to Khashoggi’s family and loved ones,” Erdogan said.

Friends and mourners gathered in Washington, DC, on Friday to attend a memorial event for Khashoggi.

The service included a funeral prayer known as “salat al-ghaib” or “prayer for the absent”, which Muslims perform for the deceased when their body has not been found.

Khashoggi’s fiancee Hatice Cengiz delivered a recorded message at the memorial, calling on the Saudis to release information about the whereabouts of Khashoggi’s body so that he can be buried according to Muslim rites.

Others present at the memorial included Khashoggi’s colleagues, US politicians, rights activists and Saudi dissidents, including Abdullah al-Awdah, whose father, the reformist Islamic scholar Salman al-Awdah, is currently detained by Saudi Arabia.

Khashoggi’s body ‘dismembered and dissolved’

An adviser to Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the team that killed Khashoggi cut up his body in order to dissolve for easier disposal.

Yasin Aktay, who was a friend of Khashoggi’s, told Hurriyet newspaper that the corpse was disposed of by dismembering and dissolving it.

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“We now see that it wasn’t just cut up, they got rid of the body by dissolving it,” he said.

“According to the latest information we have, the reason they dismembered his body is to dissolve it easier,” added Aktay.

“They aimed to ensure no sign of the body was left.”

Meanwhile, a senior Turkish official has also told Al Jazeera the journalist’s body was dismembered and dissolved in acid.

The official also said that the Saudi hit squad that carried out the killing has done similar operations before.

Earlier, a Turkish official had also told the Washington Post that authorities were investigating a theory the body was destroyed in acid.

Netanyahu: Khashoggi killing horrendous but Iran a bigger problem

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called the murder of Khashoggi “horrendous” but said preserving stability in the region and confronting Iran were more pressing matters.

“What happened in the Istanbul consulate … should be duly dealt with. Yet at the same time I say … it is very important for the stability of the world, for the region and for the world, that Saudi Arabia remain stable,” Netanyahu said.

“I think that a way must be found to achieve both goals. Because the larger problem is Iran.”

Norway summons Saudi ambassador over Khashoggi murder

Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said in a statement his country summoned the Saudi ambassador to Oslo on Thursday over the killing of Khashoggi.

“We have raised the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and presented our point of view to the Saudi ambassador several times after it was known,” Soereide said.

“We underlined how seriously we take this issue again yesterday when he was at the Foreign Ministry for a discussion.”

Khashoggi fiancee calls on international community to act, prosecute those behind killing

Hatice Cengiz, the slain journalist’s fiancee, urged the international community to take action and hold those responsible for the crime to account.

“Today, I am inviting the international community to take serious and practical steps to reveal the truth and to prosecute those involved in a court of law,” Cengiz wrote in an opinion piece published by the Guardian newspaper.

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“I am not naïve. I know that governments operate not on feelings but on mutual interests. However, they must all ask themselves a fundamental question.”

“If the democracies of the world do not take genuine steps to bring to justice the perpetrators of this brazen, callous act – one that has caused universal outrage among their citizens – what moral authority are they left with? Whose freedom and human rights can they credibly continue to defend?”

MBS describes Khashoggi as ‘dangerous Islamist’ in call with Kushner, Bolton

MBS described Khashoggi as a dangerous Islamist after his disappearance in a phone call with Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and National Security Adviser John Bolton, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.

During the alleged phone call, which took place prior to Saudi Arabia admitting to the killing of Khashoggi, bin Salman said the journalist belonged to the Muslim Brotherhood, which was outlawed by Saudi Arabia and its allies in the wake of the Arab Spring protests.

He also urged Kushner and Bolton to preserve the US-Saudi alliance.

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“The attempt to criticise Khashoggi in private,” the Post noted, “stands in contrast to the Saudi government’s later public statements decrying his death as a ‘terrible mistake’ and ‘terrible tragedy'”.

The slain journalist’s family issued a statement to the paper denying the crown prince’s characterisation as inaccurate.

“Jamal Khashoggi was not a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. He denied such claims repeatedly over the past several years,” the family said, “Jamal Khashoggi was not a dangerous person in any way possible.”

“To claim otherwise would be ridiculous.”

Gates Foundation suspends work with Saudi crown prince’s charity

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is suspending future projects with the Misk Foundation, a non-profit chaired by MBS.

“Jamal Khashoggi’s abduction and murder are extremely troubling,” a spokeswoman for the foundation told the Wall Street Journal.

“The current situation was a factor in our decision to hold off on future rounds.”

The Gates Foundation agreed to fund half of a $10 million project with its Saudi partner, dubbed the “Misk Grand Challenges”. The project aims to give grants to young people around the world for health and development initiatives.

The Gates Foundation, which has completed the first round of $1.5m in funding, said it will honour its obligations to projects already underway.

Thursday, November 1

US says Khashoggi’s remains should be located

The US State Department has said the slain journalist’s body should be found and returned to their family as soon as possible.

The comments came after State Secretary Mike Pompeo said in a radio interview “that the murder of Jamal Khashoggi is completely unacceptable. It’s out of bounds; it’s not the way nations behave.”

Pompeo said it would take a “handful more weeks” before the US has enough evidence to impose sanctions in response to the killing.

He also pointed to a “long-time, deep set of strategic relationships,” including Saudi Arabia’s petroleum production and countering Iranian expansion in the region, as “important American national security interests”.

Saudi authorities did not respond to questions over Khashoggi killing: Turkey’s justice minister

Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul said his country’s questions on the killing of Khashoggi on October 2 have not been answered by Saudi Arabia.

Speaking in the capital, Ankara, Gul demanded close cooperation from Saudi authorities to uncover details of the famed critic’s killing inside the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul.

He reiterated that responsibility for the criminal act is “unavoidable” and cannot be “covered up” and said Khashoggi’s body hasn’t been found yet.

Pressure grows on UK to sanction Saudi Arabia

The UK’s foreign secretary was pressed by a select committee on how to deal with Saudi Arabia over Khashoggi’s killing.

Jeremy Hunt called the murder appalling and said it highlighted the threat to journalists.

“If these stories are true – as they’ve been reported – it is nothing short of utterly and totally shocking… There will be an impact on the relationship with Saudi Arabia,” Hunt told the committee.

“It has brought into sharp focus that we cannot take for granted media freedom.”

He said it was possible Khashoggi’s killing has given the US and the United Kingdom the opportunity to push Saudi Arabia to improve its human rights record.

“It is because we have that strategic relationship with Saudi Arabia, because America has that relationship, that we are in a position to ask them to do things we couldn’t do if we didn’t have that relationship. And so now what we need to do is use that relationship to push for progress,” he later told the BBC.

“It is too early to say there are green shoots. There are still terrible things happening every day. The humanitarian situation is truly appalling. But there is an opportunity now and we must grasp it.”

Wednesday, October 31

Turkey’s ruling AK Party says Khashoggi killing not possible without orders from above

A spokesperson for President Erdogan’s AK Party said Khashoggi’s killing could not have been made possible without orders from someone in a senior position.

Omar Celik told reporters in Ankara that Turkey would not let anyone cover up Khashoggi’s killing, adding that it was not possible for Saudi officials to still not know of the body’s whereabouts.

Jamal Khashoggi was strangled as soon as he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and then dismembered as part of a premeditated plan, Turkey’s chief prosecutor said on Wednesday, making details of the murder public for the first time.

The revelations came just hours after Saudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor left Istanbul, and the Turkish prosecutor’s office said it was “obliged” to reveal the details after the talks produced “no concrete results”.

Gruesome reports in the Turkish media had previously alleged that Khashoggi, a 59-year-old Washington Post contributor critical of the powerful MBS, had been killed and cut into pieces by a team sent from Riyadh to silence him. His body has not been found.

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“In accordance with plans made in advance, the victim, Jamal Khashoggi, was strangled to death immediately after entering the Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, for marriage formalities,” said a statement from the office of Istanbul chief prosecutor Irfan Fidan.

“The victim’s body was dismembered and destroyed following his death by suffocation – again, in line with advance plans,” it added.

“Despite our well-intentioned efforts to reveal the truth, no concrete results have come out of those meetings.”

Saudi prosecutor completes inspection, heads to airport

Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor has completed his inspections in Turkey and is heading back to Riyadh after he held three days of talks with Turkish officials as part of the investigation into Khashoggi’s killing.

Saud al-Mojeb carried out inspections at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where Khashoggi was killed earlier this month, and held meetings with Turkey’s public prosecutor and Turkish intelligence officials.

Saudi public prosecutor Saud al-Mojeb leaves the Saudi consulate in Istanbul [Kemal Aslan/Reuters]

King Salman’s brother ‘returns to Riyadh’ amid Khashoggi crisis

The only surviving full brother of Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has reportedly returned to the kingdom, amid an international outcry over the killing of Khashoggi.

Prince Ahmad bin Abdulaziz flew back to Riyadh from London on Tuesday, according to three Saudi sources close to the prince cited by The New York Times, in what some analysts are calling a potential challenge to the authority of Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, MBS.

London-based Middle East Eye also reported Prince Ahmad’s return, quoting a source close to the prince as saying his return is intended to shake up the kingdom’s leadership.

Prince Ahmad’s arrival has not been officially confirmed by Riyadh.

Turkey doubts Saudi willingness to ‘genuinely cooperate’

Saudi Arabian officials have appeared unwilling to “genuinely cooperate” with Turkey’s investigation into the murder of Khashoggi, a senior Turkish official said.

“The Saudi officials seemed primarily interested in finding out what evidence the Turkish authorities had against the perpetrators,” the official told AFP news agency on the condition of anonymity.

“We did not get the impression that they were keen on genuinely cooperating with the investigation.”

French FM: sanctions against Saudi Arabia possible

France has not ruled out any sanctions against Saudi Arabia if its authorities are found to be involved in Khashoggi’s killing, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Wednesday.

“So long as those who are responsible and the circumstances around the killing are not made public, released and evaluated, we will go on demanding the truth,” Le Drian told RTL radio. “So far we don’t have it.”

“We’ll take the necessary measures against those who are responsible,” he said, adding that France didn’t rule out any sanctions against Saudi Arabia, which is a large buyer of French exports, including weapons and luxury goods.

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While criticising Germany for halting arms sales to Riyadh before investigations conclude, Le Drian downplayed the importance of weapons sales to Saudi Arabia for the French, saying they represented only 7 percent of the country’s overall weapon exports.

“We are not dependent on Saudi Arabia on that matter,” he said.

Gulf investors sell $273m in Saudi stocks in October: Reuters

Foreign investors, including those from other Gulf states, were net sellers of Saudi equities for most of October, partly because of fear that Khashoggi’s killing could damage Saudi ties with the West and lead to economic sanctions, according to a monthly poll by Reuters news agency.

Gulf investors sold a net total of $273m of Saudi stocks between October 8 and 26, according to exchange data. However, the poll of 13 leading Middle Eastern fund managers, suggested that most funds do not intend to continue selling.

Twenty-three percent expect to raise their allocations to Saudi equities in the next three months and the same proportion to reduce them. September’s poll showed that 38 percent anticipated increasing Saudi allocations and none foresaw cutting them.

Many managers are still looking ahead to estimated inflows into Saudi Arabia of about $15 billion of “passive” funds next year when Riyadh’s market joins emerging market indexes. Because this money is closely linked to the indexes, it is unlikely to be affected by geopolitics.

Saudi prosecutor meets with Turkish intelligence agency

Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor held talks overnight with Turkish intelligence officials over the investigation into Khashoggi’s murder, according to Demiroren news agency.

The Turkish news agency said Saud al-Mojed left his hotel shortly after midnight and went to the Istanbul regional offices of Turkey’s National Intelligence Agency (MIT). It is not clear how long he stayed.

StanChart pushes ahead with Saudi Arabia license application

Standard Charter is pressing on with its application for a banking licence in Saudi Arabia, despite the global outcry over Khashoggi’s murder.

“We have taken account of recent events, but conversely this is about running a business for the long-term and that process will continue,” Andy Halford, the bank’s chief financial officer said on Wednesday.

The bank announced in October last year that it was talking to regulators about applying for a licence in the kingdom.

On Monday, StanChart’s rival HSBC said it expected the Khashoggi case would have little long-term impact on Saudi Arabia investment.

Tuesday, October 30

UN rights chief calls for international participation in Khashoggi inquiry

United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet called for international experts to take part in an independent investigation into the killing of Khashoggi, with access to evidence and witnesses.

“For an investigation to be carried out free of any appearance of political considerations, the involvement of international experts, with full access to evidence and witnesses, would be highly desirable,” Bachelet said in a statement.

Bachelet also urged Saudi Arabia to reveal the whereabouts of Khashoggi’s body, adding that a forensic examination and autopsy were crucial in the ongoing investigation into the “shockingly brazen crime” carried out in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Erdogan: No point in protecting culprits in Khashoggi murder

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor to find out who ordered the murder of Khashoggi, and not spare “certain people” in his investigation.

“Who sent these 15 people? As Saudi public prosecutor, you have to ask that question, so you can reveal it,” Erdogan said, referring to the 15-man team suspected of being behind the crime.

“Now we have to solve this case. No need to prevaricate, it makes no sense to try to protect certain people,” he told reporters in Ankara.

Erdogan said the Turkish prosecutor had told his Saudi counterpart that the 18 suspects in the case could be tried in Turkey. Saudi officials also needed to reveal the identity of a local cooperator said to have been involved in Khashoggi’s disappearance, he said.

Susan Rice in NYT: Saudi Arabia a partner we can’t depend on

Susan Rice, former US national security adviser during President Obama’s second term, has lashed out at MBS, in an opinion piece in the New York Times.

In the op-ed, Rice said that the “brazen murder of Jamal Khashoggi raises a critical question that the Trump administration plainly wants to avoid: Can the US continue to cooperate with MBS?

“The young prince’s almost certain culpability in Mr. Khashoggi’s killing underscores his extreme recklessness and immorality, while exposing him as a dangerous and unreliable partner for the United States.”

Saudi prosecutor visits Istanbul consulate

Saudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor on Tuesday visited the consulate in Istanbul where Khashoggi was murdered, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.

The head of the Saudi investigation, Attorney General Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb, visited the consulate after meeting for the second time with Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Irfan Fidan.

Turks receive testimonies from 18 Saudi suspects

Saudi prosecutors have handed over the testimonies by the 18 suspects in the killing of Khashoggi to Turkish officials, a source in the Turkish Attorney General’s office told Al Jazeera.

The move comes after sources told Al Jazeera that Istanbul’s chief prosecutor’s office was left “unsatisfied” following a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s top prosecutor over Khashoggi’s killing.

Saud al-Mojeb, who arrived in Istanbul from Riyadh on Sunday, had been expected to provide the testimonies from the 18 suspects being held in Saudi Arabia, but according to the sources he initially failed to hand over the statements.

Monday, October 29

Khashoggi’s fiancee speaks at London memorial, calls for justice

Hatice Cengiz, Khashoggi’s fiancee, has addressed a memorial for the slain journalist in London.

The event in the British capital was attended by politicians, journalists and activists.

Cengiz said Khashoggi “felt it was his duty to be the voice of the voiceless”, before repeating her demand for justice to be served.

“I want the role of the political leadership in this brutal killing to be brought to light. I want justice for Jamal,” she told the crowd.

“I want to bury the body of the beloved Jamal. Therefore I am asking once again, where is his body? I believe that the Saudi regime knows where his body is. They should answer my demand. For this is not only the demand of a fiancee, but a human and Islamic demand from everyone, every nation.

“I want justice to be served. Not only for those who murdered my beloved Jamal but for those who organised it and gave the order of it. These questions are not just my questions, they are now being asked by millions.”

Last week, speaking to Turkish media, Cengiz said she had declined an invitation by the White House, saying she perceived US President Trump’s move to be “a statement to win public favour”.

During her speech in London, Cengiz said: “President Trump should help reveal the truth and ensure justice be served. He should not pave the way for a cover-up of my fiancee’s murder. Let’s not let money taint our conscience and compromise our values.

“Jamal was my beloved fiancee, but he was also a gentle human being, a loving man, a journalist and true believer in freedom and democracy in the Arab world. Let’s demand justice for Jamal and stand up for his ideals.”

Turkey ‘unsatisfied’ following meeting with Saudi prosecutor: sources

Sources have told Al Jazeera that Istanbul’s chief prosecutor’s office was left “unsatisfied” following a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s top prosecutor over Khashoggi’s killing.

Saud al-Mojeb, who arrived in Istanbul from Riyadh on Sunday, had been expected to provide testimonies from the 18 suspects being held in Saudi Arabia but, according to the sources, he did not.

Turkey called for the suspects to be extradited from the kingdom, saying their alleged use of a local collaborator in the killing was a legitimate reason for them to face trial on Turkish soil.

Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Istanbul, said the meeting, which lasted around 75 minutes, “didn’t go well because each party had its own expectation about what it wanted from the other side”.

He added: “The Turkish government wanted the top Saudi prosecutor to deliver more information from the 18 suspects, particularly on who gave the order to kill Jamal Khashoggi, and about the [missing] body,” he said.

“Meanwhile, the Saudis were hoping to hear more from the Turkish investigator about the ‘strong evidence’ it has on the case.

“This could explain why the Turkish government said it was not satisfied after the meeting and it was expecting more from the Saudis.”

Our correspondent added: “It’s now likely that the Saudi prosecutor will return to the kingdom for further consultation with the country’s top political leadership.

“After that, we’ll receive more clarity about whether there will be cooperation or strained relations between the Saudis and the Turks.”

Saudi and Turkish prosecutors meet

The Saudi public prosecutor leading the country’s investigation into Khashoggi’s death has met Istanbul’s chief prosecutor at the city’s court on Monday, according to Turkish state news agency Anadolu.

The meeting reportedly lasted about 75 minutes, but no information has so far been released as to what the two men discussed.

Shortly after the meeting ended, Turkey’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusoglu said that the sharing of information between Saudi and Turkish prosecutors will be useful and that Saudi Arabia should conclude the investigation into Khashoggi’s killing as soon as possible.

He also called on Saudi Arabia to reveal “the whole truth” regarding the killing of the journalist, Reuters news agency reported.

HSBC chief: Khashoggi case likely to have only ‘limited impact’ on Saudi economy

HSBC’s Chief Executive, John Flint, said Saudi Arabia is unlikely to see any significant impact on its trade and investment flows following Khashoggi’s killing.

Speaking to Reuters news agency on Monday, Flint acknowledged that the case had damaged the kingdom’s reputation internationally, but that any negative feeling will likely not be reflected in trade.

“It has been a difficult few weeks for the kingdom, this has not been good for Saudi Arabia.

“I understand the emotion around the story, but it is very difficult to think about disengaging from Saudi Arabia given its importance to global energy markets,” he said.

Saudi prosecutor Saud al-Mojeb has arrived overnight in Istanbul, where he will meet Irfan Fidan, the city’s chief public prosecutor, to discuss the latest findings in the Khashoggi case, Anadolu news agency reported.

According to a source at the Istanbul prosecutor’s office, who spoke to Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity, Fidan will ask al-Mojeb to conduct another joint search at the consul-general’s residence.

Meanwhile, the dossier that will be presented to al-Mojeb in Monday’s meeting will include interviews with 45 consulate employees.

Sunday, October 28

Turkey to present Saudi probe findings, request residence search

Turkish investigators looking into Khashoggi’s killing will present Saudi Arabia’s top prosecutor with a 150-page dossier and request another joint search at the residence of the kingdom’s consul-general in Istanbul, according to a Turkish source.

Saudi prosecutor Saud al-Mojeb will meet on Monday Irfan Fidan, the Istanbul chief public prosecutor, to discuss the latest findings in the case.

According to a source at the Istanbul prosecutor’s office, who spoke to Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity, Fidan will ask al-Mojeb to conduct another joint search at the consul-general’s residence.

Meanwhile, the dossier that will be presented to al-Mojeb in Monday’s meeting will include interviews with 45 consulate employees.

According to the source, the file also identifies four people as the prime suspects in Khashoggi’s killing but names only three of them: Saudi Consul-General Mohammed al-Otaibi, forensics expert Saleh al-Tubaiqi and Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, who was identified as being part of a 15-member team of suspected Saudi agents who flew into and out of Istanbul on October 2, the day of Khashoggi’s disappearance.

The fourth person who will be presented as a main suspect is an unnamed “local collaborator” who, according to Riyadh, was given Khashoggi’s body in order to dispose of it.

Read more here.

Saudi station chief ‘explored forest a day before Khashoggi’s murder’

Police sources have told Turkish media that the Saudi consul station chief in Istanbul went to a forest north of the city a day before Khashoggi’s killing.

A CCTV image, obtained by state television network TRT and other media, showed a black car with a diplomatic license plate at an entrance to Belgrad Forest on October 1.

Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford, reporting from Istanbul, said the man being implicated was Ahmad Abdullah al-Muzaini, one of the consulate station chiefs since 2015.

“In the last week or so, it’s also been reported that al-Muzaini left Istanbul for Riyadh on September 29 and returned on October 1, and that’s the day, according to these reports that he was seen around that forest.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier this week that consulate officials made “reconnaissance” trips to the forest as well as the city of Yalova a day before Khashoggi was killed.

Top Saudi prosecutor to arrive in Turkey

Saudi Arabia’s attorney general is set to arrive in Turkey to hold talks with investigators looking into the killing of Khashoggi. Earlier reports said the top prosecutor, Saud al-Mojeb, had already arrived.

Turkey has said al-Mojeb is expected to discuss the latest findings of the probe with Turkish investigators.

Ther visit comes just days after CIA director Gina Haspel was in Turkey to review evidence before briefing the US president.

Turkey is seeking the extradition of 18 Saudi suspects detained in the kingdom in connection with the October 2 killing.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister appeared to reject that notion in remarks on Saturday, saying the kingdom would try the perpetrators and bring them to justice after the investigation was completed.

UK knew of Saudi plot to kidnap Khashoggi three weeks before killing – Express

Britain’s Sunday Express newspaper is reporting that the United Kingdom was made aware of a plot to kidnap Jamal Khashoggi and take him back to Saudi Arabia, three weeks before he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and was killed.

An intelligence source told the Sunday Express: “We were initially made aware that something was going in the first week of September, around three weeks before Mr Khashoggi walked into the consulate on October 2.

“These details included primary orders to capture Mr Khashoggi and bring him back to Saudi Arabia for questioning. However, the door seemed to be left open for alternative remedies to what was seen as a big problem.

“We know the orders came from a member of the royal circle but have no direct information to link them to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.”

The source added that MI6 had warned their Saudi counterparts to cancel the mission, though this request was ignored.

“On October 1 we became aware of the movement of a group, which included members of Riasat Al-Istikhbarat Al-Amah (Saudi Arabia’s General Intelligence) to Istanbul, and it was pretty clear what their aim was.

“Through channels, we warned that this was not a good idea. Subsequent events show that our warning was ignored.”

Mattis calls for transparent probe in Khashoggi killing

US defence secretary, James Mattis, said that he had met Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister and called for a transparent investigation into the killing of Khashoggi.

Mattis said he met Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir during a conference in Bahrain on Saturday and discussed the killing.

“We discussed it. You know the same thing we talked about, the need for transparency, full and complete investigation,” Mattis told a small group of reporters travelling to Prague with him.

“(There was) full agreement from Foreign Minister Jubeir, no reservations at all, he said we need to know what happened and it was very collaborative, in agreement,” Mattis added.

Saturday, October 27

France’s Macron calls for sanctions over Khashoggi killing

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for sanctions on those responsible for Khashoggi’s murder.

“For me, things are clear. Firstly, some facts have been established. We must fully investigate the nature of these facts, and who’s responsible,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a four-way Syria summit in Istanbul, also attended by the leaders of Turkey, Germany and Russia.

“Sanctions must be taken on this basis and these sanctions must be coherent and complete, and be extremely concrete and proportional,” added Macron.

“It will depend on the facts as they are established and the sanctions will be taken at a European level, as we usually do, so that there is true coordination.”

Merkel and Macron to seek joint EU position on Saudi arms sales

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have agreed to find a common European Union position on arms sales to Saudi Arabia, according to Germany’s leader.

“We agreed that when we have more clarity, and we are counting on that, when we know who was behind this then we will try to find a unified European solution or reaction from all member states of the European Union to show that we negotiate on the basis of common values,” Merkel told reporters in Istanbul.

The chancellor has promised to halt all German arms exports to the kingdom until the killing of Khashoggi is explained.

Turkey’s Erdogan demands more answers in Khashoggi case

Turkey’s President Erdogan says he has shared details of the Khashoggi case in bilateral talks during a four-way summit on Syria with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany.

Speaking at a joint news conference following a summit in Istanbul, Erdogan said Riyadh needed to say who sent the 18 people believed to be responsible for the journalist’s killing to Turkey.

He also said Ankara valued the conclusion of discussions between Turkish and Saudi prosecutors, who are due to meet on Sunday.

Macron, Merkel back Europe coordination on arms sales to Saudi

France and Germany’s leaders have said they want a “coordinated” European position for sanctions on arms sales to Saudi Arabia.

This came after French President Emmanuel Macron implied on Friday that German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government was engaging in “pure demagoguery” by halting arms sales to Riyadh.

On the sidelines of a Syria summit in Istanbul, the two leaders had a “peaceful exchange”, the Elysee palace said, and agreed not to announce their next positions on the issue without first coordinating “at the European level”.

Saudi FM: Khashoggi issue has become ‘hysterical’

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir has criticised the global outcry surrounding Khashoggi’s killing as “hysterical” and rejected Turkey’s demand to extradite the suspects.

“The issue has become fairly hysterical,” al-Jubeir said, adding that investigations take time and facts should be determined as inquiries continue.

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Answering questions from journalists at a regional summit in Bahrain, al-Jubeir described Saudi Arabia’s relationship with the US as “ironclad”, despite earlier comments from US Secretary of State James Mattis that the killing “undermines regional stability”.

Saudi FM: Khashoggi murder suspects will not be extradited

Riyadh dismissed Ankara’s calls to extradite 18 Saudis wanted for the murder of Khashoggi.

“The individuals are Saudi nationals. They’re detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia,” Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told a regional defence forum in Bahrain.

He was responding to Turkish President Erdogan who on Friday renewed his call for the 18 men to be extradited for trial in Turkey.

Mattis: Khashoggi killing ‘undermines regional stability’

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis said that Khashoggi’s murder “undermines regional stability” and that the US intends to take further action in response.

Speaking to an audience of international officials in Bahrain, Mattis avoided mentioning Saudi Arabia in connection with the murder but did say that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had already revoked some Saudi visas and “will be taking additional measures”.

“With our collective interests in peace and unwavering respect for human rights in mind, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in a diplomatic facility must concern us all,” he said.

He added that “our respect for the Saudi people is undiminished” but that respect “must come with transparency and trust”.

Mattis also argued that Russia could not replace the US commitment to the Middle East, saying that Moscow lacked essential moral principles, and renewed criticism of Iran’s “outlaw regime”.

Friday, October 26

France’s Macron says Khashoggi killing no reason to halt arms sales to Saudi

French President Emmanuel Macron has dismissed calls by several European countries to suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia following Khashoggi’s murder, calling them “pure demagoguery”.

Any sanctions should target “a field of activity … or individuals or interests who have been shown to have had something to do with the murder of Mr Khashoggi”, Macron told a news conference in Slovakia’s capital, Bratislava, adding “it’s pure demagoguery to say that we should stop selling arms”.

“That has nothing to do with the Khashoggi affair. That is linked to the situation in Yemen [where Saudi Arabia is fighting Houthi rebels], which requires a very close follow-up”.

He added that any sanctions following Khashoggi’s killing should be imposed at a European level “once the facts have been established”.

Khashoggi’s fiancee: Why I declined Trump’s invitation

The fiancee of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has called for those responsible for his murder to be brought to justice, adding that she declined an invitation by US President Trump to visit the White House.

Hatice Cengiz, a Turkish national, made the comments in an emotional interview with broadcaster Haberturk on Friday, her first TV appearance since Khashoggi’s killing inside the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul more than three weeks ago.

“I demand that all those involved in this savagery from the highest to the lowest levels are punished and brought to justice,” she said.

In her interview with the Turkish broadcaster, Cengiz said Trump has invited her to visit the White House but said she would not go until the US was sincere in its efforts to uncover the truth behind Khashoggi’s killing.

Referring to Trump’s invitation, she said: “I perceived it as a statement to win public favour”.

Turkey seeks extradition of 18 Saudi suspects

Turkish prosecutors plan to seek the extradition of 18 suspects over the killing of Khashoggi.

Anadolu Agency said on Friday the Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office submitted its request to Turkey’s justice ministry, adding that the foreign ministry would formally request the extraditions.

“The reasoning behind the extradition request is that Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in Turkey by Saudi nationals who traveled to Turkey for this specific purpose,” a senior Turkish official said.

“It is clear that the judicial system in Turkey is better equipped to genuinely serve the cause of justice in this case,” the official added.

“The court proceedings in Turkey will be open to international observers in order to ensure the greatest level of transparency.”

Erdogan: Turkey has more evidence of killing

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara has more documents and information, which it will reveal “when the time is right”.

During a speech to provincial members of his AK Party in the Turkish capital, Erdogan called on Saudi Arabia to reveal who gave the order for the dissident journalist to be killed.

He also announced that the chief Saudi prosecutor will be arriving in Istanbul on Sunday to meet with his Turkish counterpart as part of the investigation into Khashoggi’s murder.

Erdogan added that Khashoggi’s killer is likely to be among the 18 men arrested by Riyadh.

“There is no other explanation, the perpetrator is among these 18 people and if it isn’t then you have to explain who is the local collaborator,” he said.

During the speech, Erdogan also called on the Saudis to hand over the men arrested in connection with the murder to Turkish authorities.

“If you are determined to lift this shroud of mystery, then this is the key point of our collaboration,” he said.

Mehmet Celik, a journalist from Daily Sabah, a pro-government English language newspaper in Turkey, said Erdogan had taken a more forceful position in the speech than previously.

“I think this is one of the harsher remarks Erdogan made on the case and he named both King Salman and Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.

“I think the [tone] and the language he used was significant in today’s speech, he was definitely harsher, he said the explanations made so far by Saudi Arabia were “childish” and he demanded more concrete and consistent answers from Saudi Arabia,” said Celik.

Search for Khashoggi’s body

Al Jazeera’s Alan FIsher said the speech showed that Turkey remained fully committed to getting to the bottom of Khashoggi’s killing.

He said that searches by Turkish authorities of a well in the consular grounds and a forest on the outskirts of Istanbul may suggest that Khashoggi’s remains have been disposed of in more than one location.

“The horrific reality is that we might be looking at not just one site, but perhaps two, three – even more – where perhaps this body has been scattered … The Turks seem to be on the mind that the body wasn’t taken out of the country and they therefore want the Saudis to point to this so-called Turkish cooperator,” he said.

Kremlin: No reason to doubt Saudi statements

Russia said it believes Saudi royals were not involved in Khashoggi’s murder after Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the case with Saudi King Salman.

Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, called a journalist’s question on whether Moscow fully believes that the royals had no part in the murder “inappropriate”.

“There’s an official statement from the king, there’s an official statement from the crown prince and no one should have any grounds not to believe them,” Peskov said during a conference call on Friday.

Putin spoke to King Salman by telephone on Thursday to discuss “the situation around the case of Khashoggi”, according to a Kremlin statement.

In the wake of the Khashoggi controversy, a number of international leaders as well as prominent CEOs pulled out of an investment summit in Riyadh.

Al Jazeera’s Step Vaessen, reporting from Moscow, said that a Russian delegation did attend the Future Investment Initiative.

“It has been said, that Russia might be taking advantage of the deteriorating relationship between Saudi Arabia and a lot of Western countries,” she said.

Turkish foreign minister speaks with Saudi counterpart

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has had a telephone call with his Saudi counterpart Adel al-Jubeir, a Turkish foreign ministry source said on Friday.

No information has so far been revealed about the content of the call.

Germany welcomes plan for joint EU position on Saudi arms deals

Germany’s Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said he welcomed Austria’s proposal for a joint European position on arm exports to Saudi Arabia.

Altmaier made the comments in an interview with German broadcaster Deutschlandfunk (DLF) on Friday.

The German government has agreed not to deliver weapons to the kingdom at the moment, he said in an interview during a visit to Turkey, adding that the effect of that decision would be stronger if European countries adopted a common position.

US praises Saudi move to lift travel ban on Khashoggi’s son

The son of slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Salah, arrived in the US after Saudi Arabia lifted a travel ban.

A State Department spokesperson said the US welcomed the decision by Riyadh to allow the dual Saudi-American citizen to go.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed Salah’s status during his recent visit to the kingdom, spokesman Robert Palladino told reporters.

Palladino said Pompeo “made it clear to Saudi leaders that he wanted Salah Khashoggi to return to the United States, and we are pleased that he is now able to do so”.

The destination of Salah and his family was not known, but his late father lived in the Washington area.

The Saudi leadership drew sharp condemnation this week for staging a photo-op showing a clearly uncomfortable Salah shaking hands with MBS, who has been accused of orchestrating Khashoggi’s murder.

UN: Khashoggi was victim of ‘extrajudicial execution’

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The United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions said Khashoggi’s killing bears the hallmark of an extrajudicial execution.

“What we know is sufficient to suggest very strongly that Mr Khashoggi was the victim of an extrajudicial execution and that the Saudi Arabia government is implicated in one way or another,” Agnes Callamard told Al Jazeera.

Callamard called for an international investigation into Khashoggi’s murder earlier in the day at a UN session in New York City.

Faisal Fahad, the Saudi representative on the UN committee, said Callamard had overstepped her remit with her comments. “Kindly do not give us any personal opinions in this official meeting,” he said.

Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays, reporting from the United Nations, said it’s unclear if an international probe will come to fruition.

“The UN secretary general [Antonio Guterres] says he will only form a panel to investigate if he gets a referral from one of the main bodies of the UN – the Security Council, the General Assembly, or the Human Rights Council, or from one of the countries concerned,” he said.

Agnes Callamard, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Summary or Arbitrary Executions [Karim Kadim/AP]

CIA director briefs Trump on Turkey evidence

CIA chief Gina Haspel returned from Turkey and briefed US President Trump on her findings in the Khashoggi killing, the US State Department said.

“The president received a briefing from Director Haspel this morning following her return from Turkey. She briefed the president on their [Turks’] findings and her discussions,” spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement.

The Washington Post, which Khashoggi contributed to as a columnist, has reported that Haspel listened to “compelling” audio recordings from Turkey’s government that captured the killing of the Saudi writer.

Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna, reporting from Washington, DC, said the Trump-Haspel meeting was crucial as the US president said he wanted all the evidence available before making a decision on how to respond to Saudi Arabia.

He noted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also attended the meeting, but there were no other details of exactly what was discussed.

“The silence is a bit strange given that President Trump had been so adamant in recent days that this was a critical meeting in terms of the US getting information to determine how it’s going act in the days ahead,” said Hanna.

Khashoggi Friends Association holds global protest demanding justice

Supporters of Jamal Khashoggi gathered in cities around the world calling for those responsible for his murder to be held accountable.

In Istanbul, a man wearing a mask of MBS, with fake blood on his hands, stood outside the consulate where he was killed more than three weeks ago.

The demonstrations were organised by a group calling itself the Khashoggi Friends Association, which is demanding justice for his murder.

Protests were also held in London, Paris, and Washington, DC.

The event was not just a call for accountability for Khashoggi’s death, it was also an appeal to leaders in the Middle East to respect freedom of speech, highlighting “journalism is not a crime“.

Thursday, October 25

Saudi king briefs Putin on investigation into Khashoggi death – SPA

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin by telephone to brief him on the investigation into Khashoggi’s murder.

According to the official Saudi press agency, the king assured Putin the Saudi government was determined to hold the guilty parties accountable and to make sure “they receive their punishment”.

Merkel condemns Khashoggi killing in call with Saudi king

German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a phone call with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman, and vowed to take appropriate measures in response, the chancellery said.

Merkel “made clear that the exact course of events must be cleared up”, the chancellery said after Thursday’s telephone call between the two leaders.

“The chancellor urged Saudi Arabia to ensure a rapid, transparent and credible investigation. She stressed that all those responsible must be held accountable,” the statement said.

Scarlett Johansson reportedly turned down film funding from MBS: The Guardian

The Guardian newspaper reported that actor Scarlett Johansson reportedly vetoed funding from MBS for her next film about Pulitzer prize-winning photojournalist Lynsey Addario.

Addario, who won the Pulitzer for her work in Pakistan, told the New York Times that when Johansson found out the initial set of funders included Bin Salman, she rejected his involvement.

“Scarlett Johansson said absolutely not,” Addario told the New York Times’ Nicholas Kristof.

“She said: ‘This guy is perpetuating the war in Yemen. He has women in prison’.”

Reports: Khashoggi’s son has left Saudi Arabia

The Reuters news agency is reporting that Salah, one of the sons of the slain Khashoggi, has left Saudi Arabia after reportedly being under a travel ban since his father began writing critically about MBS in columns for The Washington Post.

Sarah Leah Whitson, the executive director for the Middle East and North Africa Division at Human Rights Watch tweeted: “Good news for a change: confirming that #JamalKhashoggi son Salah and his family are finally out of Riyadh and on their way to US, travel ban lifted. Too bad Salah had to endure that cruel and bizarre greeting with MBS first.”

BREAKING Good news for a change: confirming that #JamalKhashoggi son Salah and his family are finally out of Riyadh and on their way to US, travel ban lifted. Too bad Salah had to endure that cruel and bizarre greeting with MBS first. — Sarah Leah Whitson (@sarahleah1) October 25, 2018

Saudi dissident and satirist Ghanem Almasarir, whose social media mockery of MBS gets millions of hits, has said he is undeterred by Khashoggi’s murder.

Speaking at a protest on Wednesday outside the Saudi embassy in London, Almasarir said Khashoggi’s slaying had shown the wider world a darker side to the power wielded by MBS.

“If they are not held accountable, they will continue to do it,” the 38-year-old said, adding that many Saudi dissidents living in the UK were “afraid right now to leave their houses”.

Saudi public prosecutor says Khashoggi murder premeditated

Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor said the assassination of Khashoggi inside the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul was “premeditated”, Reuters and AFP news agencies reported, citing Saudi state media.

“Information from the Turkish authorities indicates that the act of the suspects in the Khashoggi case was premeditated,” the public prosecutor said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

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“The public prosecution continues its investigation with suspects … to complete the court of justice.”

Prosecutors are interrogating suspects on the basis of information provided by a joint Saudi-Turkish task force, the report said.

MBS attends intelligence meeting: Saudi Press Agency

Saudi Arabia’s state-run Saudi Press Agency said on Thursday that bin Salman has attended the first meeting of a committee tasked with restructuring the kingdom’s intelligence services after Khashoggi’s killing.

Turkish FM: Ankara won’t take Khashoggi’s case to international court

Turkey’s foreign minister said that Turkey had no intention of taking the Khashoggi case to an international court, but would share information if the court launched its own investigation.

Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday that Ankara is taking all necessary steps to clear up the mystery surrounding what happened to Khashoggi and is cooperating with everyone who wants to cooperate, including Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at a news conference with Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki, he also reiterated that everyone involved in the killing should be investigated and tried in Turkey.

Ex-CIA chief: MBS would have known about Khashoggi killing beforehand

Former CIA Director John Brennan has said he has “no doubt” that MBS would have had prior knowledge of any plans to kill Khashoggi.

Speaking at a live event on Wednesday, Brennan joined the international chorus of condemnation of the murder.

“Whether or not [bin Salman] authorised the dismemberment, the horrific and brutal killing and torture of [Khashoggi] and the reported dismembering of his body, I don’t know. But I have no doubt in my mind that MBS was fully aware of what was ultimately going to happen to Jamal Khashoggi and had approved it,” he said.

CIA chief heard murder audiotape on Turkey trip: report

CIA Director Gina Haspel is flying back to Washington, DC, from Turkey after reportedly listening to an audio recording that captured Khashoggi’s killing, the Washington Post reported.

Quoting people familiar with her meetings with Turkish officials, the newspaper said Haspel heard the “compelling” recordings while on a visit to Turkey this week. Turkish media reports also suggested the CIA boss heard recordings documenting Khashoggi‘s death.

If confirmed, the recording gives a key American official access to the evidence used by Turkey to accuse Saudi Arabia of premeditated murder and puts pressure on the US to hold the Saudi leadership to account for the killing of the Post’s contributing columnist.

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“This puts the ball firmly in Washington’s court,” the newspaper quoted Bruce Riedel, a former CIA official and scholar at the Brookings Institution, as saying.

“Not only will there be more pressure now from the media but Congress will say, ‘Gina, we would love to have you come visit and you can tell us exactly what you heard.'”

The Saudi crown prince, colloquially known as MBS, the country’s de facto leader, has denied having knowledge of the alleged assassination mission and on Wednesday promised to bring those responsible to justice.

He called the killing of Khashoggi a “heinous crime”.

It remains unclear if the powerful crown prince will allow a legitimate probe, since he’s been accused of a direct role in Khashoggi’s murder.

“How should a real investigation in Saudi Arabia work when one of the main suspects is the crown prince MBS?” a Turkish senior official was quoted by the Post as saying.

“He is one of the suspects. Members of his royal guard were part of the killing squad. The US nor the rest of the world should really accept this,” the official told the newspaper on condition of anonymity.

US lawmakers propose bill to ban arms sales to Saudi Arabia

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a bill in the US House of Representatives that would stop most US arms sales to Saudi Arabia in response to Khashoggi’s killing.

The US government and American defence industry are scrambling to save the few actual deals in a much-touted $110bn weapons deal for Saudi Arabia as concerns rise about the role of the kingdom’s leadership in the murder.

The bill includes a prohibition on security assistance, intelligence, training and equipment, but does not extend to activities related to safeguarding US diplomatic posts or personnel.

The bill said US President Trump could request exceptions to the arms sale ban if he also submitted a report on a US investigation into anyone involved in “the murder of journalist and United States permanent resident Jamal Khashoggi”.

“What it essentially says is that arms deals with Saudi Arabia should be reviewed, in particular relating to training, intelligence, equipment. This is unless President Trump provides a report establishing Saudi Arabia’s innocence in this matter,” reported Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna from Washington, DC.

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He noted, however, that Congress is in recess “so there can’t be any discussion over this legislation until after the mid-term elections when the House of Representatives reconvenes” in mid-November.

Saudi government funds won’t pay for new FIFA events

Facing scrutiny over links to Saudi Arabia, FIFA says new competitions that are projected to bring in $25bn will not be funded directly by any nation.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s meetings with Saudi King Salman and MBS over the past year raised questions about the kingdom’s involvement in the overhaul of international football competitions for national teams and clubs.

Seven months after Infantino offered a limited outline of the financial proposition, FIFA council members have been informed of principles that will govern “any potential future agreement” with investors in the Club World Cup and worldwide Nations League, according to documents seen by AP news agency.

“FIFA would not enter into a joint venture for this purpose, whether directly or indirectly, with sovereign wealth funds of individual states,” the documents state, not addressing investment from private entities linked to states.

FIFA is distancing itself from Infantino’s comment at a media briefing in June where he was asked whether the Saudis were backers of the project.

“Whoever invests in sport generally, I think, is welcome provided we do the things in an appropriate way,” Infantino said at the time.

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Proposals have stalled because of opposition within the council to Infantino’s secrecy over the financial backers.

“Football is not for sale,” UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, who is also a FIFA vice president, said in May. UEFA is opposed to the new Club World Cup proposal.

“I cannot accept that some people, some of our colleagues, who are blinded by the pursuit of profit are considering to sell the soul of football tournaments to nebulous private funds,” Ceferin added.

Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp, which is part of the group seeking a joint venture with FIFA to sell the rights to the new competitions, has received $45bn from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund for technology investments.

Investments with Saudi Arabia have become increasingly problematic for organisations since Saudi officials were accused of killing Khashoggi.

Saudi crown prince jokes Lebanon PM ‘not kidnapped’

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince joked about allegations that Lebanon’s Premier-Designate Saad Hariri was detained in the kingdom last year, saying he hoped Hariri’s current visit did not spark “abduction” rumours.

Hariri “will be staying in the kingdom for two more days, so I hope there are no rumours of his abduction”, MBS said while addressing the Future Investment Initi