Mike Pompeo meets Saudi King, discusses issue of Jamal Khashoggi's disappearance
Riyadh, Oct 16 (IBNS): US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday arrived in Saudi Arabia and met the country's King Salman here and discussed the issue of investigation into the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
As per an official statement issued by the US government, Pompeo thanked the King for his commitment to supporting a thorough, transparent, and timely investigation of Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance.
Today in #Riyadh â¦@SecPompeoâ© met with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman to discuss regional & bilateral issues. He also thanked the King for his commitment to supporting a thorough, transparent & timely investigation of #JamalKhashoggi ‘s disappearance. pic.twitter.com/EC1rDSxLXr
— Heather Nauert (@statedeptspox) October 16, 2018
"Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo met today with Saudi King Salman in Riyadh. The Secretary thanked the King for Saudi Arabia’s strong partnership with the United States. The Secretary and the King discussed a number of regional and bilateral issues. The Secretary also thanked the King for his commitment to supporting a thorough, transparent, and timely investigation of Jamal Khashoggi’s disappearance," read the statement.
Donald Trump sees "rogue killers" behind disappearance of journalist:
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has said he feels that "rogue killers" might be behind the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.
Speaking to reporters after a phone call with King Salman, he said the Saudi leader had firmly denied knowing what had happened to Khashoggi, media reports said.
"It sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers," Trump added.
"Who knows?" he said.
Trump had earlier tweeted: "Just spoke to the King of Saudi Arabia who denies any knowledge of whatever may have happened 'to our Saudi Arabian citizen.' He said that they are working closely with Turkey to find answer. I am immediately sending our Secretary of State to meet with King!."
Meanwhile, the Saudis are preparing a report that will acknowledge that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death was the result of an interrogation that went wrong, one that was intended to lead to his abduction from Turkey, sources told CNN.
Mystery around Khashoggi's disappearance:
Khashoggi, a Saudi national, went missing after he visited the Saudi consulate in Istanbul this month.
As per a BBC report, Jamal Khashoggi went to the consulate on Tuesday to obtain a document certifying he had divorced his ex-wife, so that he could marry his Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz.
Cengiz was quoted as saying by media that she waited outside the consulate for several hours but he never came out.
She even tweeted and said she could believe that the journalist has been 'killed'.
She also said that she is waiting for an official confirmation on the issue.
Image: Heather Nauert Twitter page
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