German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks during her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party colleague and Hesse State Prime Minister Volker Bouffier's campaign rally for the upcoming state election Dieburg, Germany, October 23, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the strongest terms possible 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 in a statement 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.