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AFP
Istanbul
Turkey and the United States on Thursday ratcheted up the pressure on Saudi Arabia to explain how a journalist vanished after entering its Istanbul consulate last week, with President Donald Trump declaring he"had to find out what happened".
UN officials have also expressed their"concern" to Saudi Arabia over the unexplained disappearance, a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
Khashoggi, a Saudi national whose articles have criticised the prince, has not been seen since October 2 when he went to the consulate in Istanbul to obtain official documents for his upcoming marriage. Turkish officials have said he was killed -- reportedly by a 15-man"assassination team" that arrived on two planes -- but Riyadh denies that.
The disappearance has captivated the world but also threatens to harm Saudi's relations with both Ankara and Washington, as well as hurt efforts by Prince Mohammed to improve the country's image.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan challenged Saudi Arabia to provide CCTV images to back up its account that Khashoggi had left the consulate safely, indicating he did not find the current Saudi explanations sufficient."Is it possible there were no camera systems in a consulate, in an embassy?" he asked.
"If a bird flew, or a fly or a mosquito appeared, the systems would capture this; they (Saudi Arabia) have the most cutting-edge systems," he was quoted as saying. The consulate said CCTV cameras were not working that day and dismissed the murder claims as"baseless".
The case is also threatening the strong relationship the Trump administration has built with Prince Mohammed, who wants to turn the oil-rich conservative kingdom into a hub for innovation and reform.
The two sides have worked together in confronting Iran despite growing concern over the prince's campaign against dissidents, which critics say has revealed the true face of his rule.
In a reversal from Washington's initial low-key response, Trump expressed determination to get to the bottom of the matter.
"We can't let it happen. And we're being very tough and we have investigators over there and we're working with Turkey and frankly we're working with Saudi Arabia," Trump said in an interview with"Fox and Friends".
