The director of the CIA has reportedly listened to an audio recording of the interrogation and killing of Jamal Khashoggi.
Gina Haspel departed for a trip to Turkey on Monday and people familiar with her meetings there told The Washington Post she had heard the tapes.
Saudi Arabia‘s powerful crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, claimed on Wednesday that the journalist’s killers would be brought to justice, before warning anyone against trying to “manipulate” the crisis to drive a wedge between the kingdom and Turkey.
His comments came after Donald Trump said that if anyone in the kingdom’s power structure had known about the plot, “it would be” its de facto leader, the crown prince.
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Turkey has no intention of taking the case regarding Khashoggi's killing to an international court, but would share information if an international investigation was launched, its foreign secretary has said.
Mevluv Cavusoglu asked where Khashoggi's body was as he made the comments during a news conference with Palestinian foreign minister RIyad al-Maliki.
Turkish media have broadcast images showing two Saudi operatives allegedly linked to Khashoggi's murder carrying what appeared to be large black cases, which could purportedly be the journalist's remains.
Saudi operatives linked to Jamal Khashoggi's murder seen carrying large cases in newly released images
Second day of Saudi investment conference kicks off with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman set to speakTurkish authorities have been focusing on a well in the garden of Saudi Arabia's consulate as part of its investigation into Khashoggi's death. His body is still missing.
Yeni Safak, a pro-government Turkish newspaper, said investigators emptied the well and were awaiting the results of an analysis of the water to determine whether body parts were dumped there.
But Sabah, another pro-government newspaper, said Saudi Arabia has yet to give Turkish authorities permission for a search.
Reuters has cited two sources saying the director of the CIA, Gina Haspel, heard an audio recording of the killing of Khashoggi during her visit to Turkey.
Also on Wednesday, Saudi officials gave Turkish police permission to search a well at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul as part of their investigation into Khashoggi's disappearance.
Saudi officials give Turkish police investigating Khashoggi murder permission to search well at Instanbul consulate
Investigators hunting for journalists missing body were initially blocked from gardenTheresa May has said the UK will revoke the visas of those suspected of involvement in killing Khashoggi. She said Saudi Arabia's claim the journalist died in a fist fight "does not amount to a credible explanation".
UK to 'revoke Saudi suspects' visas today' over Jamal Khashoggi's murder, Theresa May says
PM adds Saudi claim Mr Khashoggi died in a 'fight' does not amount to a credible explanationSaudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, said Saudi Arabia and Turkey would work together "to reach results" on a joint investigation and described cooperation between the two countries as "special", despite criticism from Ankara.
"The incident that happened is very painful, for all Saudis ... The incident is not justifiable," the crown prince said on a discussion panel at the conference in Riyadh.
Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, spoke to Prince Mohammed on Wednesday and the two discussed the steps needed to bring to light all aspects of Khashoggi's death, a presidential source told Reuters.
But in the bluntest sign yet of strained ties, one of Mr Erdogan's advisers wrote in a Turkish newspaper that Prince Mohammed had "blood on his hands".
Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman said on Wednesday that Khashoggi's killing was a “heinous crime that is painful to all Saudis” in his first public comments since the furore over the murder.
Saudi crown prince says Jamal Khashoggi's murder is a 'heinous crime that cannot be justified'
In his first public comments since the killing, Mohammed bin Salman said: ‘All legal things [are being done] to finalise the investigation to co-operate with the Turkish government, to present the perpetrators to the court’Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, has come under increasing pressure over the death of Khashoggi, a columnist and one of the crown prince's most prominent critics.
The crisis has strained Riyadh's ties with the West and led dozens of politicians, top world bankers and company executives to boycott an investment conference that opened in Riyadh on Tuesday, dubbed "Davos in the Desert".
On Wednesday, Turkish media published security camera images allegedly showing a vehicle belonging to the Saudi consulate "scouting" a forest on the outskirts of Istanbul before Khashoggi was murdered.
The image obtained by state television TRT and other media shows a black car with a diplomatic license plate at an entrance to Belgrade Forest.
On Tuesday, Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said consulate officials had made "reconnaissance" trips to the forest as well as the city of Yalova a day before Khashoggi was killed.
Here is everything we know so far about the killing of Khashoggi, from our Middle East correspondent, Richard Hall.
Everything we know about the death of Jamal Khashoggi
Three weeks ago, the dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi walked into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to collect paperwork he needed to get married. He was never heard from again. What followed was a gruesome spectacle of leaks and lies in which Saudi Arabia denied any knowledge of Khashoggi’s whereabouts, while Turkish investigators drip-fed details of their investigation to the press.Good morning and welcome to the latest in the diplomatic fallout from the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.
Saudi Arabia initially denied involvement in the journalist's disappearance, but eventually attributed his death to a botched attempt to return him to the kingdom. However, Turkey has dismissed Saudi efforts to blame rogue operatives and urged it to search "top to bottom" for those responsible.
The director of the CIA, Gina Haspel, who departed for a trip to Turkey on Monday, has listened to an audio recording of Khashoggi's interrogation and killing, sources told The Washington Post.
It comes after Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, vowed that the killers would be brought to justice in his first public comments since the journalist's murder.
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