Turkish police granted permission to search wellin consul's residence

Turkish police, who were denied permission to search a well in the garden of the Saudi consul general's residence in Istanbul as part of the investigation into the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi earlier on Wednesday, were allowed to conduct the search later in the day.

Authorities have previously carried out inspections at the consulate and consul general's residence in Istanbul as part of the investigation.

Khashoggi, a columnist for the Washington Post, was last seen on Oct. 2 when he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

On Sunday, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir admitted that Khashoggi had been killed inside the consulate, but insisted that Mohamed bin Salman -- Saudi Arabia’s high-profile crown prince -- had been unaware of the plot to murder the journalist.

Al-Jubeir has also posited the notion that the killing was carried out by “rogue” elements of the Saudi security apparatus.

On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan rejected official Saudi narratives of Khashoggi’s demise, claiming to have "strong evidence" that the murder was planned and executed by the Saudi authorities.