The preliminary results of a Saudi investigation into missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi confirm that he died at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Saudi state media reported on Saturday.
Khashoggi died following a “fistfight” at the consulate, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
“The discussions between Jamal Khashoggi and those he met at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul … devolved into a fistfight, leading to his death,” SPA reported, citing the public prosecutor.
“The investigations are still underway and 18 Saudi nationals have been arrested,” a statement from the Saudi public prosecutor said, adding that royal court adviser Saud al-Qahtani and deputy intelligence chief Ahmed Asiri have been sacked from their positions.
Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2 to obtain documents for his upcoming marriage to a Turkish citizen.
Pro-government Turkish media have repeatedly claimed Khashoggi was tortured and decapitated by a Saudi hit squad inside the consulate, but Turkey has not yet revealed details about the investigation.
Saudi Arabia had previously rejected accusations that Khashoggi died at the consulate as “baseless.” State media also downplayed allegations from Turkish officials that a Saudi “assassination squad,” including an official from Crown Prince Mohammed’s entourage and an “autopsy expert,” flew in ahead of time and laid in wait for Khashoggi.