U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan have agreed in a phone call that the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul must be fully explained, the Turkish presidency has said.
"Erdogan and Trump agreed the Khashoggi case needs to be cleared up with all aspects," a statement by the president's office said early on October 22, according to the Anadolu news agency.
The remarks came shortly after the Turkish president said he would make public on October 23 the "naked truth" about the dissident's killing.
Riyadh initially said the 60-year-old journalist had left the Saudi Consulate unharmed on October 2, but on October 20 said he was killed in a "fistfight" inside the building -- a claim that has been met with global skepticism.
The Saudi foreign minister on October 21 called Khashoggi’s killing a "rogue operation" and an "aberration."
Adel al-Jubeir told Fox News that those responsible would be held accountable for "this huge and grave mistake."
Trump, in an interview published on October 21, criticized the explanation by Saudi Arabia, a close U.S. ally, saying that "obviously there’s been deception, and there’s been lies."
Trump has repeatedly said over the past week that he opposes any effort to jeopardize more than $100 billion in U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia, but that he would consider sanctions on the kingdom.
Britain, Germany, and France, meanwhile, issued a joint statement condemning Khashoggi's killing at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, saying there is an "urgent need for clarification of exactly what happened."
