Saudi minister calls Khashoggi killing \'a mistake\'

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister on Sunday denied Riyadh's crown prince was in any way connected to the death of a journalist inside kingdom's consulate in Turkey.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAYING: "The crown prince has denied this.

The crown prince is not aware of this.

Even the senior leadership of our intelligence service was not aware of this.

This was an operation that was a rogue operation.

This was an operation where individuals ended up exceeding the authorities and responsibilities they had.

They made a mistake when killed Jamal Khashoggi in the consulate, and they tried to cover up for it." The diplomat called the death of Jamal Khashoggi a tragedy and said that Saudi investigators were working to determine who was responsible and promising they would be punished.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAYING: "This is an aberration.

This is a mistake.

This is a criminal act and those responsible for it will be punished." Jamal Khashoggi, a sixty-year-old Saudi-born, U.S.-based Washington Post columnist and frequent critic of Riyadh, has not been seen since he visited a Saudi consulate in Turkey eighteen days ago.

Turkish officials said Khashoggi was ambushed, tortured, murdered, and dismembered by a special 15-member Saudi security team sent specifically for that task.

Saudi officials at first said Khashoggi left the consulate alive, only later saying he'd died in a fist fight - a claim critics derided as absurd.

But the Kingdom on Sunday tried to take its message directly to a U.S. audience, giving an exclusive interview to Fox News.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAYING: "I see a lot of speculation in the press.

I see a lot of hearsay, and I see a lot of gossip and I just caution people to be cautious.

Let the investigation in Turkey and in Saudi Arabia unfold.

And when the results come out, we will know the truth." The shifting explanations from Riyadh over what appears to be the brutal murder of a journalist leading U.S. lawmakers to demand answers from one of their closest strategic allies, and accusations the killing was ordered by Saudi Arabia's powerful crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia says 18 men were arrested in connection to this case.