Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who wrote critically of the kingdom's policies and of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, disappeared earlier this month on a trip to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, where Turkish officials believe he was killed.
Here are some key moments in the disappearance of the Washington Post columnist:
Mike Pompeo Said US Takes Khashoggi Case ‘Very Seriously’
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says he told Saudi Arabia's rulers that the US takes "very seriously" the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and will await the outcome of investigations by the kingdom and Turkey before deciding how the US will respond.
Pompeo addressed reporters Thursday after briefing President Donald Trump at the White House on his talks with leaders in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
Pompeo says the Saudis assured him they will conduct a "complete, thorough" investigation into Khashoggi's disappearance.
Police Search Saudi Consul’s Home
Turkish crime-scene investigators searched the home of the Saudi consul general in Istanbul on Wednesday in the disappearance of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi, and a pro-government newspaper published a gruesome account of the journalist's alleged slaying.
It was the second such extraordinary search of a site considered under international law to be sovereign Saudi territory after investigators spent hours in the consulate earlier this week.
Khashoggi’s Last Column Warns of Free Rein to Silence Media
The Washington Post has published a new column by Khashoggi in which he warns that governments in the Middle East "have been given free rein to continue silencing the media at an increasing rate."
In a note affixed to the top of the column, the Post’s Global Opinions editor Karen Attiah said she received the essay from Khashoggi's translator and assistant a day after he was reported missing.
In the op-ed, titled "Jamal Khashoggi: What the Arab world needs most is free expression", Khashoggi recounted the imprisonment of a prominent writer who spoke against the Saudi establishment, and cited an incident in which the Egyptian government seized control of a newspaper.
‘Rogue Killers’ Might Have Murdered Khashoggi: Trump
In a comment that could give Saudi officials a route to climb down from outright denials, President Donald Trump suggested Monday that "rogue killers" could be responsible for the disappearance and presumed murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who hasn't been seen since entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago.
Trump's comment came after a 20-minute phone call with Saudi Arabia's King Salman in which Trump said the king adamantly denied any knowledge of what happened to Khashoggi.
"The king firmly denied any knowledge of it," Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a trip to survey hurricane damage in Florida and in Georgia. Trump said he didn't "want to get into (Salman's) mind," but told reporters: "it sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers. I mean, who knows? We're going to try getting to the bottom of it very soon, but his was a flat denial."
Police Found Evidence of Khashoggi Slaying: Turkish Official
Police searching the Saudi Consulate found evidence that Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi was killed there, a high-level Turkish official said Tuesday, and authorities appeared ready to also search the nearby residence of the consul general after the diplomat left the country.
French, UK and Dutch Ministers Cancel Trip to Saudi Conference
Senior government officials from France, Britain and the Netherlands joined a growing list of people cancelling out of an investment conference in Saudi Arabia amid questions over the kingdom's involvement in the disappearance of dissident writer Jamal Khashoggi.
Man Linked to Saudi Prince Entered Consulate Just Before Khashoggi Vanished
A man who previously traveled with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's entourage to the United States entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul just before writer Jamal Khashoggi vanished there, according to images published Thursday by a pro-government Turkish newspaper.
Turkey Has Pledged Accountability in Saudi Probe
Under global scrutiny, Turkey vows to get to the bottom of the alleged killing of a Saudi journalist at the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul. But some observers see a double standard in promises of transparency from a government accused of stifling freedom of expression.
While there might be parallels between some restrictions on freedoms in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the Turkish reports about Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post, are horrifically unprecedented.
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