“It is a disgrace that reaches all the way to Crown Prince (Mohammed bin) Salman. At least five members of the execution team are (Mohammed bin) Salman’s right hands and are people that wouldn’t act without his knowledge,” Ilnur Cevik, one of several advisers to Turkey’s Erdogan, wrote in the Yeni Birlik newspaper.

“Even if U.S. President Trump saves (Mohammed bin) Salman, in the eyes of the world he is a questionable person with Khashoggi’s blood on his hands,” Cevik’s column said.

It was not immediately clear if Cevik’s remarks reflected the views of Erdogan, who in speeches on Tuesday and Wednesday highlighted the need for all of those responsible - “from those who ordered it to those who carried it out” - to face justice.

Saudi Arabia has agreed to a joint investigation into Khashoggi’s killing with Turkey, allowing a joint search of its consulate in Istanbul days after the journalist’s death.

As part of that probe, Turkish police in Istanbul have been granted permission to search a well in the garden of the Saudi consulate, broadcaster NTV said on Wednesday. Earlier, Saudi officials had refused to sanction a search.

SAUDI RESPONSE

Saudi Arabia has detained 18 people and dismissed five senior government officials as part of the investigation. Among those fired was Saud al-Qahtani, a top aide to Prince Mohammed. According to two intelligence sources, Qahtani ran Khashoggi’s killing by giving orders over Skype.

Khashoggi’s death and ensuing uproar have shaken global confidence in ties with the world’s top oil exporter.

In the latest sign of unease, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said the killing pointed clearly to a violation of human rights that required a review of Switzerland’s ties to Riyadh.

“The clues that are emerging centimeter by centimeter speak a clear language: A violation of human rights and the rule of law,” he told Swiss tabloid Blick.

“We have to ask ourselves the question of what that means for our bilateral relations. And we will definitely do that.”

The German government is discussing how to deal with arms exports to Saudi Arabia that have already been approved but not yet delivered, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said.

France will take appropriate measures if Saudi Arabia’s guilt over the killing of Khashoggi is clearly established, government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said.

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