Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said he thinks there will be “rapid progress” in bringing the killers of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi to justice.

After meeting with the Saudi king in Riyadh, Mr Hunt said he expected to hear about the progress of legal proceedings in the case “quite shortly”.

The foreign secretary used the trip to tell Saudi officials their allies needed assurances that such an incident “cannot and will not happen again”, he said.

The kingdom has admitted a team of agents murdered Khashoggi, who was a prominent critic living in self-imposed exile in the US, and has arrested 18 people allegedly involved .

Jamal Khashoggi’s sons demand return of murdered journalist’s body for burial in Saudi Arabia

Mr Hunt also used his visit to the Saudi Arabian capital to press for an end to the bloody civil war in Yemen, where three years of conflict has resulted in a devastating humanitarian crisis.

Saudi Arabia had confirmed its willingness to evacuate 50 wounded Houthi fighters to Oman for medical treatment, making prospects for talks to end to the fighting “more real”, the foreign secretary said.

Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Show all 7 1 /7 Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Jamal Khashoggi Washington Post journalist who was critical of the Saudi regime and the young Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, he was murdered on 2 October in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul AFP Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Heir to the Saudi throne, Mohammed bin Salman has been implicated in the murder, with US officials claiming that he must have known of the plot AFP/Getty Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures 15 man hit squad Turkish police suspect these 15 men of being involved in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, issued 10 October, 8 days after the journalist disappeared EPA Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Saud al-Qahtani Aide to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saud al-Qahtani is claimed to have ordered Khashoggi's murder Saud Al-Qahtani/Twitter Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb A former diplomat who often travelled with the Crown Prince, Mutreb was initially claimed to be the leader of the hit squad and is pictured here entering the Saudi consulate on the day of the murder AP Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Mustafa al-Madani First implicated in the 15 CCTV photos released by the Turkish police, al-Madani was later found to have been used as a body double for Khashoggi, leaving the Saudi consulate dressed in his clothes on the day the journalist was killed CNN Jamal Khashoggi death: key figures Salah bin Jamal Khashoggi (L) Son of the murdered journalist met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on 23 October EPA

“It is a desperate humanitarian situation and so I impressed on everyone the urgency of the situation we’re facing,” he said.