A security ofiicial holds barriers as officials leave Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish investigators who searched the Saudi consulate in Istanbul as part of the probe into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi took evidence including soil samples, a senior Turkish official said on Tuesday.

“The Turkish crime scene investigators carried out searches in the consulate and took the things deemed necessary,” the official told Reuters after a Turkish team carried out a nine-hour search of the premises.