Turkish Khashoggi investigators inspect villa in Yalova

A villa in the northwestern province of Yalova is being investigated by Turkish police as part of the ongoing probe into the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the state-run Anadolu news agency said on Monday.

The residence lies in the the Samanli village of the Termal district in Yalova, Anadolu said.

The officers began searching a two-storey building in Termal district in Yalova with the help of sniffer dogs and drones on Monday morning, and the investigation later widened to the adjacent villa, state news agency Anadolu added.

Crime scene investigators were inspecting a well in the garden of the first villa in Samanli village, while images showed fire trucks at the scene.

Khashoggi, former Saudi royal insider who became a critic of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was murdered at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul last month.

Leaked Turkish intelligence and CIA reports concluded the murder was orchestrated among the highest circles of the Saudi royal family, implicating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

His death unleashed a global wave of criticism against the crown prince, despite Saudi officials claiming he had no role in the killing.

The 59 year-old journalist was at the consulate in Istanbul seeking documents needed to marry his Turkish fiancee. Riyadh - after weeks of denial - said he was killed in a "rogue" operation.

Last month, investigators widened the search for the remains of the journalist to Yalova and a forest on the outskirts of Istanbul.

In a poignant farewell to their father published in The Washington Post this week, the daughters of the slain journalist vowed that "his light would never fade".

"This is no eulogy, for that would confer a state of closure," Noha Khashoggi and Razan Jamal Khashoggi wrote in a Post opinion piece published online on Friday.

"Rather, this is a promise that his light will never fade, that his legacy will be preserved within us."

For him "writing was not just a job; it was a compulsion. It was ingrained into the core of his identity, and it truly kept him alive.

"Now, his words keep his spirit with us, and we are grateful for that."

Saudi authorities are seeking the death penalty against five men over the killing, but attention remains focused on the crown prince despite an official insistence that he was not involved.

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