Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s killing was recorded: Turkey

Turkish government says it has proof that Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed inside Saudi consulate.

A demonstrator dressed as Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with blood on his hands protests with others outside the Saudi Embassy in Washington, DC.

The Turkish government has what it describes as audio and video recordings purporting to show that Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, and has shared the evidence with U.S. officials, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Turkish officials may release the evidence in coming days, these people said, adding the recordings have been described by those who have reviewed them as evidence of a killing. The audio evidence is particularly graphic, according to these people.

“Turkish investigators have sound [audio] from inside the consulate which makes it clear they killed him,” one of the people said.

Saudi Arabia says it had nothing to do with the journalist’s disappearance. The disclosure of the new evidence concerning Mr. Khashoggi came as the Trump administration said it was awaiting a determination regarding the well-known writer and columnist’s fate, but also as Republican and Democratic pressure intensified pressure on the White House to prepare for a “severe” response.

Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, pictured in 2015.

President Trump, for a second day, expressed concern on Thursday over reports that Mr. Khashoggi is dead and that the Saudi government has been implicated by Turkey. But he said he wouldn’t favor a halt in arms sales to Saudi Arabia should an investigation implicate Riyadh, although he would be open to other actions.

Mr. Khashoggi, a prolific writer, was one of the best-known voices in the region, contributing columns and commentary to outlets including the BBC, Al Jazeera and the Washington Post and building a Twitter following of nearly 2 million.

He advocated on behalf of expanded democratic governance among the regimes of the Middle East and, in particular, maintained that Islamist movements such as the Muslim Brotherhood should be included in choices available to the region’s citizens. Saudi officials classify the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group.

Mr. Khashoggi was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last week. His fiancée, a Turkish woman, accompanied him to the consulate and waited outside for him, but said he never came out. Saudi Arabia denies he was taken into custody.

“We don’t like it, we don’t like it a little bit,” Mr. Trump said. “What happened is a terrible thing, assuming that happened,” he added. “Maybe we’ll be pleasantly surprised, but somehow I doubt it.”

The Wall Street Journal