Turkish authorities have come to the conclusion that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who has emerged as one of the most high-profile critics of the kingdom’s government, was killed in the Saudi Arabian Consulate in Istanbul earlier this week. Khashoggi entered the consulate Tuesday to get a document he needed to get married. His fiancée, who was waiting outside, says he never emerged. Inside the consulate, Khashoggi was allegedly met by a 15-member team who traveled from Saudi Arabia “specifically for the murder,” two people told the Washington Post. One source told the paper that “it was a preplanned murder.”

The sources who talk to the New York Times don’t appear to be so sure on the premeditated murder part, saying that while Khashoggi was met by a special team of Saudi agents but it wasn’t clear “if the plan had been to bring him back to Saudi Arabia alive, and something went wrong, or if the intention was to kill him there.” Turkish officials haven’t offered any evidence, or even spoken on the record, about the claims but the Istanbul public prosecutor’s office has opened up an investigation into the disappearance.

Khashoggi is a former newspaper editor who left the country last year in what he described as a self-imposed exile and became a prominent critic of the kingdom, writing columns for numerous newspapers including the Washington Post. Khashoggi’s fiancée wrote a tweet Saturday that she wouldn’t believe anything until there was official confirmation. “Jamal was not killed and I do not believe he was killed,” Hatice Cengiz posted.

جمال لم يقتل ولا اصدق أنه قد قتل ...! #جمال_الخاشقجي #اختطاف_جمال_خاشقجي pic.twitter.com/5SHyIEqqiT — Hatice Cengiz / خديجة (@mercan_resifi) October 6, 2018

Saudi Arabia vehemently denied the accusations Saturday through an unnamed official at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. “The official strongly denounced these baseless allegations, and expressed his doubt that they came from Turkish officials that are informed of the investigation or are authorized to comment on the issue,” noted the statement released through the Saudi Press Agency.

If confirmed, the news would likely lead to an international scandal as it would mark a sharp escalation in Saudi Arabia’s efforts to silence dissent. Although Western governments have often looked the other way at the kingdom’s actions, the murder of a prominent journalist isn’t something that could be easily ignored by those eager to embrace Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s 33-year-old ruler. Press freedom groups have called on Saudi Arabia to immediately account for Khashoggi’s whereabouts. “The Saudi authorities must immediately give a full and credible accounting of what happened to Khashoggi inside its diplomatic mission,” the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said.

"The Saudi authorities must immediately give a full and credible accounting of what happened to Khashoggi inside its diplomatic mission." CPJ Deputy Executive Director @RobertMMahoney https://t.co/qjWkZEPW4m pic.twitter.com/Xe4u6MgmS6 — Committee to Protect Journalists (@pressfreedom) October 7, 2018

“If the reports of Jamal’s murder are true, it is a monstrous and unfathomable act,” Fred Hiatt, the director of The Post’s editorial page, said in a statement. “Jamal was — or, as we hope, is — a committed, courageous journalist. He writes out of a sense of love for his country and deep faith in human dignity and freedom. He is respected in his country, in the Middle East and throughout the world. We have been enormously proud to publish his writings.” The Post has published excerpts from some of Khashoggi’s columns to help readers understand why “his truth-telling” made “people angry,” wrote Hiatt.

Why have we been proud to publish Jamal Khashoggi? And why did his truth-telling make people angry? Read excerpts from Jamal Khashoggi’s columns for The WaPo here, and you will understand. @postopinions https://t.co/jtEmBr87iS — Fred Hiatt (@hiattf) October 7, 2018