Turkey calls for Khashoggi probe to be completed as ‘soon as possible’

Turkey calls for the investigation into the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to be completed “as soon as possible,” after state media reported Saudi Arabia’s chief prosecutor met with the head of the Turkish probe.

“We naturally see an advantage in our prosecutors sharing information and working together,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tells a press conference in Istanbul.

“The cooperation must continue, but it must not be drawn out or turn into a diversion. The investigation must be completed as soon as possible, so that the whole truth is revealed,” he adds.

His comments come after Saudi Attorney General Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb met with Istanbul chief prosecutor Irfan Fidan in the Turkish city’s main Caglayan court for around 75 minutes, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

Mojeb, who last week acknowledged that the killing was “premeditated” based on Turkish evidence, arrived in Istanbul early Monday and is expected to inspect the Saudi consulate where Khashoggi was killed.

The case has brought near unprecedented international scrutiny on Saudi Arabia, which is seeking to draw a line under the crisis after offering a series of differing narratives in the weeks following Khashoggi’s murder.

The 59-year-old Washington Post contributor, who had criticized Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, vanished after entering the consulate on October 2 to obtain paperwork for his marriage to his Turkish fiancee.

— AFP