UPDATE | Saudi-Turkish team begins search of consulate

ISTANBUL (AP) — The Latest on the disappearance of a Saudi writer who Turkish officials fear was killed inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul:

11:06 a.m.

A joint Saudi-Turkish team has entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul to search it, nearly two weeks after the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The team arrived Monday afternoon to the consulate in Istanbul’s upscale 4th Levent neighborhood as journalists filmed and shot photographs of their arrival.

It’s unclear what kind of search the officials will conduct and if it will involve forensics, especially since Khashoggi disappeared on Oct. 2.

A cleaning crew walked into the consulate hours ahead of the investigative team’s arrival.

Turkish officials have said they fear a Saudi hit team killed and dismembered Khashoggi, who wrote columns in the Washington Post that were critical of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The kingdom has called such allegations “baseless” but has not offered any evidence Khashoggi ever left the consulate.

10:02 a.m.

President Donald Trump said Monday he had spoken with Saudi Arabia’s king, who “denies any knowledge” of what happened to the Saudi journalist who disappeared after entering the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago. Trump said he had dispatched Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to the region.

What did happen to Jamal Khashoggi, according to the king? Trump said, “He didn’t really know. Maybe I don’t want to get into his mind, but it sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers -- I mean, who knows?”

Trump has been under pressure to take action on the suspected murder of journalist Khashoggi, a Saudi citizen who has been living and writing in the United States, including columns critical of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Turkish officials say that they believe Saudi agents killed and dismembered Khashoggi after he entered the consulate and that Turkey has audio and video recordings of it.

The kingdom has called the allegations “baseless” but has offered no evidence the writer left the consulate.

On Monday, Trump tweeted that he “just spoke to the King of Saudi Arabia who denies any knowledge of whatever may have happened ‘to our Saudi Arabian citizen.’ He said that they are working closely with Turkey to find answer. I am immediately sending our Secretary of State to meet with King!”

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow declined to speculate on what Trump might do after the president promised “severe punishment” in a “60 Minutes” interview if the U.S. determines that Khashoggi was indeed killed inside the Saudi consulate.

Saudi Arabia has pledged to economically retaliate for any U.S. punitive action.

Trump has said repeatedly he does not want to halt a proposed $110 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia — as some in Congress have suggested — because it would harm the U.S. economically.

“We will take stern action with the Saudis if necessary,” Kudlow said. “The United States is the dominant energy player so we’re in pretty good shape, in my opinion, with our energy boom to cover any shortfalls. We’ll wait and see, but rest assured that when the president says we will take actions if we find out bad outcomes, he means it.”

Kudlow said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin would be attending a previously scheduled Saudi conference this week to address terrorist financing but those plans could change as details of the investigation become available.

Sens. Marco Rubio and Jeff Flake, members of the Foreign Relations Committee, said Congress is prepared to move quickly and firmly if Trump fails to adequately respond to the Oct. 2 disappearance of Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor. Rubio said U.S.-Saudi relations may need to be “completely revised” and stressed the U.S. would lose credibility on human rights if the Trump administration remained silent.

He also said Mnuchin should skip the Saudi conference.

“I don’t think any of our government officials should be going and pretending it’s business as usual until we know what’s happened here,” said Rubio, R-Fla.