Pompeo meets Saudi king and crown prince for talks about missing journalist
Top official at Istanbul’s Saudi consulate, the last place Jamal Khashoggi was seen, left Turkey just hours after police said they would search his home as part of probe into disappearance of journalist
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told top US diplomat Mike Pompeo that they are “strong and old allies”, during talks on Tuesday about missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Both men were seen smiling and exchanging pleasantries before a closed-door meeting to discuss the case of Khashoggi, a Saudi citizen and US resident, who was last seen entering the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
Turkish officials have said they believe he was killed inside – a claim Saudi Arabia has denied. Ankara said on Tuesday the Saudi consul flew back to Riyadh just hours after police announced they would be searching his home as part of their investigation into Khashoggi’s disappearance.
Police who searched the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Monday found evidence Khashoggi was killed there, a high-level Turkish official said later.
The US State Department said the prince told Pompeo he was committed to a thorough and transparent investigation into Khashoggi’s disappearance, repeating an earlier pledge from King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
“We are strong and old allies. We face our challenges together – the past, the day of, tomorrow,” the prince said.
The US secretary of state was in the Saudi capital after President Donald Trump speculated “rogue killers” may be responsible and dispatched him to hold “face to face meetings with the Saudi leadership” about Khashoggi.