Stating that he would like to make a comprehensive assessment of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, who is certain to have been killed in the Saudi Arabia Consulate, President Erdoğan said, "Jamal Khashoggi goes to the consulate on Friday, September 28, for the first time. It appears that this visit has been reported to the team planning the murder. A planning and roadmap are starting to work here. The fact that some consulate personnel went back to their country in a hurry indicates the preparations were made there."

"On October 1, 16.30 a team of 3 people came to Istanbul. Another team from the consul general is conducting reconnaissance in the Belgrade Forest and Yalova. The third team comes to Istanbul on a scheduled plane. The other team, including the generals, comes to Istanbul by private aircraft. A total of 15 people meet at the consulate general. The hard drive from the consulate camera is ripped out."

"15-members of Saudi intelligence, security and forensic medicine came to our country"

"After Khashoggi entered the consulate, he has never seen from since," the President said. "His fiancée applies to our authorities. The police department is initiating an investigation."

"As a result of security footage in the area, it becomes ascertained that Khashoggi never left the building. Due to diplomatic immunity, no physical action was taken against the staff at first."

"First of all, 15 Saudi nationals that are security, intelligence and forensics people arrived in our country, beginning on the eve of the murder. Six of these people have left our country on a private plane on 2 October at 6:20 pm and seven at 10.50pm. Another person with a beard and eyeglasses attempted to resemble Jamal Khashoggi and another person left for Riyadh on a scheduled flight."

 "The consul-general denied [it] at first. On 6 October, the consul general’s staff invited Reuters staff in and nonchalantly tried to defend itself by opening cupboards. Our security services continued to look into the issue in uncovering new information and documents."

"18 arrested suspects include same names involved in crime"

President Erdoğan continued his words as follows:

"During a call with the Saudi king, we reached an agreement to create a joint working group, as I have discussed with a prior delegation, which has started its works."

"On instruction from the king, the prosecutor’s office and teams from the police forces have entered the consul general building for certain inquiries. Of course, just as the consul general had not allowed us principally, I spoke to the delegation who had come in about the insufficiency of this consul general, which I reiterated to the king himself. In addition, a day after I had spoken, the consul general was removed from his post. The consul general has now returned to his country."

"On 19 October, 17 days after the murder, the Saudi administration has officially admitted that Jamal Khashoggi was killed in the consulate building. In the statement made on behalf of the administration, it was said that Jamal Khashoggi had perished during a melee in the consulate. We had a phone call with King Salman bin Abdul Aziz in the late hours of the same day, and he said that 18 people involved in the murder had been arrested. The names in the list given to our country were found to be the same as the names involved in crime."

"On 21 October, we had a comprehensive phone call with Trump and we have agreed on bringing to light every aspect of the issue. As Turkiye, we have managed this entire process in line with the seriousness of the state and international law. In the spirit of this, there has been a complaint of slander in various media. We know who had conducted these campaigns with what purpose. These attempts on our country’s reputation will never be able to detain us from seeking the truth."

"Above all, this murder may have been committed in the consulate on Saudi sovereign land, but it should not be forgotten that it rests within the borders of Turkiye."

"The Vienna Convention can’t allow murder to be concealed behind the armor of [immunity]. On the other hand, Jamal Khashoggi, along with being a Saudi citizen, is a world-renowned journalist which gives us an international responsibility on this issue."

"Turkiye, along with its own right of sovereignty, will follow this matter on behalf of the international community and on behalf of the consciousness of humanity."

"Evidence that has thus far surfaced reveals Jamal Khashoggi as the victim of a gruesome murder. Covering up such an atrocity will harm and hurt the consciousness of all humanity and we expect the same sensitivity from all parties in the matter, especially the Saudi government."

"By admitting to murder, the Saudi authorities have taken a significant step. Now we expect them to put all those responsible forward and we expect them to be penalized before the law. It is clear that this murder did not happen at the drop of a dime. The following questions continue to persist:

"Why have these 15 people gathered in Istanbul on the day of the murder? We are seeking an answer to this question. On whose orders have these people come? We are seeking answers. Why has the consul general's building not been open right away, only days after? We are seeking answers."

"As Turkiye, we will follow the matter to the very end and we will make sure that whatever the requirements of our own law, that it will be upheld."

"I’m making a call today. This call is to the high-level executives. The incident took place in Istanbul. Therefore, the adjudication of these 15 plus 3 people should be carried out in Istanbul. That is my proposal.

Further stressing that no one should even think that the case will be closed before all the questions surrounding the murder are answered, President Erdoğan said: "Some data, which are being assessed by our security and intelligence units as we speak, indicate the incident was definitely premeditated. As the assessment of these data is completed, they will be included in the prosecutor’s case file."

"Pinning such an incident on a few security and intelligence officials satisfies neither us nor the international community. The conscience of the humanity will be contented only if all, from those giving the order to those executing it, are held to account."

Emphasizing the importance of such a critical investigation being conducted by a truly impartial and just committee which doesn’t have even the slightest doubt of connection with the murder, President Erdoğan stated: "Since this is a political murder, the accomplices in other countries, if any, should also be included in the investigation. This is what the international law, the Islamic law, and I believe, the law of the Saudi state requires."

"As Turkiye, we will follow the issue until the end and ensure that all the requirements of both our own laws and the international law are fulfilled."

ILKHA