Jamal Khashoggi: Joint search team enters Saudi consulate

Officials have begun a search of the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi was last seen.

The inspection by a joint Turkish and Saudi team comes almost two weeks after the disappearance of the Saudi journalist - a staunch critic of the kingdom.

Speaking on Monday, Donald Trump said the Saudi leader King Salman denied "any knowledge of whatever may have happened" during a phone call.

The US president also said "rogue killers" could be behind the disappearance and that King Salman had told him Saudi Arabia is "working closely with Turkey to find answers".

US secretary of state Mike Pompeo is on is way to meet the Saudi ruler for further discussions.

Speaking to reporters as he set off for Florida from the White House, President Trump said he did not "want to get" into King Salman's mind, but added: "It sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers.

"We're going to try getting to the bottom of it very soon, but his was a flat denial."

It is still unclear what kind of search the investigators will conduct and if it will involve any forensic examinations.

However, cleaners were seen walking into the consulate hours before the officials arrived.

Mr Khashoggi, a US resident, went missing after visiting the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on 2 October.

Turkish officials claim Mr Khashoggi was killed and dismembered inside the building by a 15-member Saudi "assassination squad" and say they have evidence to support their claims.

They have not made any of the information they are basing their claims on public, although pro-government Turkish press reported that audio of the killing was recorded on Mr Khashoggi's Apple watch .

Saudi officials have called all the allegations "baseless", but have offered no evidence the journalist left the consulate.

Federica Mogherini, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs, said member states expected "transparency" and "full clarity" from the joint investigation.

"We support very much the messages that come along the same lines from other partners, starting from Washington," she said.

"I expressed myself the first time exactly the same day when Secretary Pompeo said exactly the same words, I think we are completely on the same page with our American friends on this."

Saudi Arabia previously said it will retaliate against any sanctions imposed against it over the case, after US President Donald Trump said the oil-rich kingdom deserves "severe punishment" if it is found responsible.

In a statement published by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the kingdom warned if it "receives any action, it will respond with greater action, and that the kingdom's economy has an influential and vital role in the global economy".

"The kingdom affirms its total rejection of any threats and attempts to undermine it, whether by threatening to impose economic sanctions, using political pressures or repeating false accusations," the statement said.

On Sunday, King Salman thanked Turkish President Recep Erdogan in a phone call for forming the joint investigation team, saying no-one could undermine the relationship between the two countries.

Despite Mr Trump promising to get "to the bottom of it" and warning of "severe punishment", he said the US would be "punishing itself" if it cancelled military sales to Riyadh over the disappearance of the Saudi journalist.

The billionaire tycoon revealed that his administration secured a $110bn (£83.6bn) military order from Saudi Arabia and that the deal included Saudi commitments to invest heavily in the US.

He said the deal was worth hundreds of thousands of US jobs.