‘Syringes, electro-shock devices, and a blade similar to a scalpel were among the tools carried by Jamal Khashoggi’s alleged killers as they departed Istanbul after murdering the Washington Post journalist inside a Saudi consulate last month.
But there was not yet any evidence of a bone saw that would have been required to dismember his body, according to a new report published Tuesday.
The pro-government daily newspaper Sabah published photos purportedly showing tools carried by the 15-man Saudi hit squad as they left Istanbul aboard a private jet after allegedly murdering the Washington Post columnist.
The leaked photos, along with a flurry of other leaks from recordings taken of the moment’s before, during, and after Mr Khashoggi’s murder, suggest a continued pressure on Saudi Arabia and its Western allies over the 2 October killing of the 59-year-old US resident inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
The New York Times on Tuesday cited unnamed officials describing one member of the Saudi kill team being recorded phoning Riyadh after murdering Mr Khashoggi and saying “tell your boss,” in a possible reference to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is widely suspected of ordering the hit.
Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt on Tuesday became the first ranking UK. official to meet with Prince Mohammed since the Khashoggi murder in what was described as an attempt to encourage Riyadh to wrap up the three-and-a-half year war it is leading in Yemen and to “push for real accountability against those responsible for the brutal murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi,” according to a statement issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
A statement issued by the Saudi press agency did not mention Yemen or Mr Khashoggi, but noted that Prince Salman and Mr Hunt “reviewed Saudi-British partnership in all fields, the latest developments in the region and the exerted efforts towards them.”’
