Turkey seeks arrest of two Saudi crown prince allies over Khashoggi murder

A Turkish prosecutor has demanded that arrest warrants be issued against two Saudi nationals close to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Istanbul’s chief prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants against two former aides to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Source: AP

Istanbul’s chief prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants for two former aides to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The prosecutor is seeking warrants for royal court adviser Saud al-Qahtani and deputy intelligence chief Ahmed al-Assiri, who are believed to have overseen the team that killed and dismembered Khashoggi at the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate in October.

Jamal Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Turkey. Source: AAP

Both advisors were dismissed amid the fallout from the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

Saudi authorities have previously said the agents who killed Khashoggi exceeded their authority.

Tuesday’s court application says there is “strong suspicion” the two aides were involved in planning the killing.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Source: AAP

The chief prosecutor's office in Istanbul said the pair were "among the planners" of the murder of the Washington Post contributor.

Turkey has been seeking to extradite 18 suspects, including 15 members of the alleged assassination squad.

Saudi Arabia has already detained 21 people and says it is seeking the death penalty for five.