US President Donald Trump says he would not listen to a recording of the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
In an interview that aired Sunday, Trump has made clear that the audio recording, supplied by the Turkish government, would not change his decision on how to respond to Khashoggi's October 2 killing.
US intelligence agencies have concluded it was ordered by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
"Because it's a suffering tape, it's a terrible tape. I've been fully briefed on it, there's no reason for me to hear it," Trump said in the interview with Fox News Sunday.
"I know everything that went on in the tape without having to hear it."
Trump on Saturday called a CIA assessment blaming Prince Mohammed for the killing "very premature" and said he would receive a complete report on the case on Tuesday.
Khashoggi, a US resident and Washington Post columnist who was critical of Crown Prince Mohammed, was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Intelligence officials have been providing information to Trump about the death for weeks and he was briefed again by phone on Saturday by CIA Director Gina Haspel and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Trump told Fox News Sunday that the crown prince had repeatedly denied being involved in the killing.
He declined to say if evidence the crown prince was involved would alter relations with Riyadh.
"Well, will anybody really know?" Trump said.
"At the same time, we do have an ally, and I want to stick with an ally that in many ways has been very good."
Trump's comments came as Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said Khashoggi's killers may have taken his dismembered body out of Turkey three or four hours after the murder.
"They may have taken out Khashoggi's dismembered corpse inside luggage without facing problems due to their diplomatic immunity," broadcaster CNN Turk quoted Akar, who was speaking at a panel as part of an international conference in Halifax, Canada.
Riyadh has offered numerous contradictory explanations for his disappearance, before saying Khashoggi was killed after "negotiations" to convince him to return to Saudi Arabia failed.
Saudi public prosecutor Shalaan al-Shalaan said on Thursday that Khashoggi's body was dismembered, removed from the building and handed to an unidentified "local co-operator".
Shalaan said the Saudi prosecutor had requested the death penalty for five individuals "charged with ordering and committing the crime, and for the appropriate sentences for the other indicted individuals".
He did not name the five.
However, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he was not satisfied with Shalaan's statement.
He pushed for Riyadh to disclose the location of Khashoggi's remains and called for the suspects to be tried in Turkey.
Australian Associated Press
