Saudi royals express condolences to Khashoggi’s son

ISTANBUL: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has called the son of Jamal Khashoggi, the kingdom has announced, to express condolences for the death of the journalist killed at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul by officials allegedly including a member of the royal’s entourage.

King Salman similarly made a condolence call as international pressure on the kingdom continued to rise, even after it acknowledged on Saturday that the Washington Post journalist was killed on October 2 at the consulate under stilldisputed circumstances.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would ‘‘go into detail’’ about the Khashoggi case in a speech in Parliament.

Saudi Arabia’s explanation that Khashoggi was killed in a ‘‘fistfight’’ and 18 Saudis have been detained has been met with international scepticism and allegations of a coverup to absolve Prince Mohammed of direct responsibility.

Turkish media reports and officials said a 15member Saudi team flew to Istanbul, laid in wait for Khashoggi at the consulate, then cut off his fingers, killed and dismembered the 59yearold writer.

‘‘Why did these 15 people come here? Why were 18 people arrested? All of this needs to be explained in all its details,’’ Erdogan said.

The staterun Saudi Press Agency announced the calls to Khashoggi’s son, Salah, yesterday. Statements from the agency said King Salman and Prince Mohammed expressed their condolences for his father’s death.

The call came after a leaked photograph apparently taken from surveillance footage shows Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, a member of Prince Mohammed’s entourage on trips to the United States, France and Spain this year, at the consulate, just ahead of Khashoggi’s arrival.

Saudi Arabia has not acknowledged or explained Mutreb’s presence in Istanbul. — AP