'Important for us that the body is found', says Khashoggi's fiancee

Hatice Cengiz, fiancee of deceased scribe Jamal Khashoggi, on Friday (local time) called for the remains of the body of the former Washington Post columnist, while complaining that the deceased has not even received any proper burial where his loved ones can grieve and pray.

"It is important for us that the body is found, that we have a place at which his beloved ones could say prayers," Al Jazeera quoted Cengiz as saying.

The remarks by Cengiz came during the release of the book, 'Jamal Khashoggi: His Life, Struggles and Secrets in Istanbul' on Friday. The book consists of 228 pages and is written by two Turkish journalists, based on interviews with Cengiz, who described it as "emotional" as it portrays a side of Khashoggi which was only witnessed by those who were closest to him.

Cengiz in her statement further added that she is hopeful that Khashoggi's killers will be punished and has appealed to the European Union and the US to closely follow the case.

"I would like to take this opportunity to say that we would welcome in a very nice way in the event he (US President Donald Trump) takes a new stance regarding this subject," she added.

In addition, Cengiz noted that Saudi King Salman "has a conscience" and will support the probe in this case.

Khashoggi was assassinated in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2 last year, where he had gone to obtain paperwork certifying his divorce with the ex-wife in order to be able to re-marry his Turkish fiance Cengiz.

Meanwhile, the United Nation's special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, Agnes Callamard, leading the investigations into Khashoggi's death, on Thursday confirmed that evidence showed the latter to be a victim of "a brutal and premeditated killing, planned and perpetrated by officials of the state of Saudi Arabia".

According to the US intelligence agencies, the murder of Khashoggi was enacted upon orders by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud.