Oscar-winning actor and filmmaker Sean Penn has reportedly begun filming a new documentary about Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi‘s killing, according to a Turkish media report.
Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate’s building in Istanbul on October 2 to obtain documentation certifying he had divorced his ex-wife. He was not seen since.
Saudi Arabia has admitted that the Saudi critic died in a premeditated murder inside its Istanbul consulate – after weeks of consistent denials that it had anything to do with his disappearance.
Turkish media have reported Khashoggi was killed and dismembered based on recordings from the consulate. They say he died at the hands of a 15-member assassination squad from Saudi Arabia.
ALSO READ: Crimes against Journalists: Who was Jamal Khashoggi and what his killing means for press freedom
Penn was accompanied by a crew of around 10 including bodyguards, and was spotted shooting in front of the consulate building in Istanbul on Wednesday, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The two-time Oscar winner was also seen outside the consul general’s nearby residence, the agency said.
#SeanPenn in Istanbul to film #Khashoggi documentary https://t.co/jubxejdvav pic.twitter.com/9SM219faKG
— ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG) (@anadoluagency) December 5, 2018
The above image shared by Anadolu shows Penn outside the mission where Khashoggi was strangled before he was cut up into pieces by the assassination squad especially sent to Istanbul for the task.
The actor was also expected to meet Khashoggi’s Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, during his visit, according to Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah.
Meanwhile, six top US senators from across party lines have introduced a resolution to directly hold the Saudi crown prince accountable for the killing of Khashoggi, Al Jazeera reported.
The proposal says the Senate “has a high level of confidence” that Mohammed bin Salman “was complicit in the murder”.
“This resolution – without equivocation – definitively states that the crown prince of Saudi Arabia was complicit in the murder of Mr Khashoggi and has been a wrecking ball to the region jeopardising our national security interests on multiple fronts,” Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator and close ally of President Donald Trump, said in a statement.
If the Senate approves the resolution, MBS would be condemned for the killing.
ALSO READ: Turkey has evidence documenting Jamal Khashoggi was killed in seven and a half minutes: Erdogan
Moreover, United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on Wednesday that an international investigation was needed to determine who was responsible for the murder.
When inquired at a news conference in Geneva about the need for an international inquiry, she replied: “I do believe it is really needed in terms of ensuring what really happened and who are the (people) responsible for that awful killing.”
Senior US senators said on Tuesday, after receiving a CIA briefing on the matter, that they were more certain than ever that Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, MBS.
(With inputs from Al Jazeera, Anadolu and news agencies)
