RIYADH/ISTANBUL: Saudi Arabia’s king and crown prince have received members of the family of murdered dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi as Turkey added to global pressure on the kingdom to answer questions lingering over the circumstances of his death.
King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman offered their condolences to Khashoggi’s brother and son during a meeting at the royal palace in Riyadh, official Saudi news agency SPA reported.
Erdogan also offered his condolences to Khashoggi’s family in a phone call on Tuesday, according to state news agency Anadolu. In the same call, he pledged to “shed light on the murder,” Anadolu said.
Erdogan’s remarks, three weeks after Khashoggi disappeared inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, follow earlier statements by Riyadh that the journalist was killed by a rogue team, including local cooperatives.
“Why did these 15 people team up in Istanbul? On whose orders? Who is this local cooperative?” he asked.
“No one should ever think that this case can be covered up before all these questions are answered,” Erdogan said, adding that the whereabouts of Khashoggi’s body are still unknown.
The kingdom admitted on Saturday — 18 days after the incident — that Khashoggi indeed died in the consulate but blamed the death on a “fistfight” and said more than a dozen people were being questioned.
— AFP/dpa
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