- Harris slams Trump for hypocrisy on abortion as US starts voting
- Academy to host first overseas ceremony to honor young filmmakers
- No doctor necessary: US okays nasal spray flu vaccine for self-use
- Gurbaz, birthday boy Rashid lead Afghanistan to 177-run rout of South Africa
- Former delivery man Baldwin leads star names at PGA Championship
- Trump shooting: Secret Service admits complacency
- Can an ambitious Milei make Argentina an AI giant?
- Haiti, its suffering growing, in 'race against time': UN expert
- Ibrahim Aqil, the Hezbollah elite unit commander wanted by the US
- Chinese forward Cui signs NBA contract with Brooklyn Nets
- US Fed dissenter calls for 'measured' pace of rate cuts
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload as Kompany demands cap on games
- Norway limits wild salmon fishing as stocks hit new lows
- Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
- Rotterdam fatal knife attacker suspected of 'terrorist motive'
- First early votes cast in knife-edge US presidential election
- Top-ranked Swiatek out of Beijing due to 'personal matters'
- Hard-right Reform UK looks to the future after vote success
- Embiid agrees to NBA contract extension with 76ers
- Joshua aims to complete road to redemption in Dubois bout
- World champion Bagnaia sets pace with lap record at Misano
- Biden says 'working' to get people back to homes on Israel-Lebanon border
- Pope criticises Argentina's crackdown on protesters
- Court limits screenings of videos in France mass rape case
- Gurbaz century takes Afghanistan to 311-4 in 2nd ODI
- Central banks face 'difficult balancing act': IMF chief
- McLaren's Norris sets Singapore pace as struggling Verstappen 15th
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload fears
- Paris Olympics sports equipment moves to new homes
- 'Happy' Kinghorn relishing life at Toulouse
- Norris sets Singapore pace as Verstappen only 15th
- 8 dead in Israeli strike, source says Hezbollah commander killed
- Germany to bid to host women's Euro 2029
- Portugal brings deadly forest fires under control
- Postecoglou defends Solanke after slow start to Spurs career
- US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen to power Microsoft
- Arteta urges Arsenal to take next step in Man City showdown
- Stock markets fall after Fed-fuelled rally
- Top Hezbollah commander 'killed' in Israel strike
- Poland charges Russian over attack on Navalny ally: prosecutors
- Man City have rest 'advantage' in Arsenal showdown: Guardiola
- Maresca has 'no doubt' in Jackson as Chelsea's number nine
- EU chief announces 35 bn euro loan plan for Ukraine before winter
- From TikTok to Hollywood, the irresistible rise of Italy's Khaby Lame
- Verstappen punished for swearing in Singapore press conference
- Sri Lanka lead by 202 in first New Zealand Test
- Brook 'not too fussed' by England's batting in heavy Australia loss
- India's Ashwin 'happy' to embrace pressure
- A modern 'Trojan Horse': two days of mayhem in Lebanon
- Third of Burundi mpox cases in children under five: UN
Turkish president meets Saudi leaders in first visit since Khashoggi killing
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Thursday with Saudi Arabia's king and crown prince during his first visit since the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi drove a wedge between the Sunni powers.
Pictures published by Turkish state media showed separate sit-downs with King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler who US intelligence officials have determined approved the plot against Khashoggi -- something Riyadh denies.
The trip came as Turkey, facing an economic crisis fuelled by the collapse of its currency and soaring inflation, tries to drum up financial support from energy-rich Gulf countries.
Prior to flying from Istanbul to Saudi's second city Jeddah, where some roads were lined with Turkish and Saudi flags, Erdogan said he hoped "to launch a new era" in bilateral ties.
"We believe enhancing cooperation in areas including defence and finance is in our mutual interest," Erdogan said.
Saudi agents killed and dismembered Khashoggi, a Saudi insider turned critic who wrote columns for The Washington Post, in the kingdom's Istanbul consulate in October 2018. His remains have never been found.
The gruesome act risked isolating Saudi Arabia, and especially Prince Mohammed, while escalating Riyadh's regional rivalry with Ankara.
Turkey infuriated the Saudis by pressing ahead with an investigation into the murder, which Erdogan said was ordered at the "highest levels" of the Saudi government.
Saudi Arabia responded by unofficially putting pressure on Turkey's economy through a boycott of key Turkish imports.
But trade between the two has been gradually improving, and in January Erdogan said he was planning a visit to Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this month, an Istanbul court halted the trial in absentia of 26 Saudi suspects linked to Khashoggi's death, transferring the case to Riyadh.
The Turkish decision infuriated human rights campaigners and Khashoggi's widow Hatice Cengiz, who vowed to appeal it in a higher court.
- 'Vindication'? -
Fallout from the Khashoggi affair continues to mar Saudi Arabia's image, especially in the United States.
Erdogan's arrival will be seen as a win by Saudi officials keen to turn the page, said Saudi political analyst Ali Shihabi.
"Of course it is a vindication," Shihabi said. "Erdogan was isolated and paid a high economic price in massive economic losses resulting from an economic and travel boycott, which is why he is the one coming to Saudi".
Both countries stand to benefit, he added, as Erdogan "needs the trade and tourism flows from Saudi, and Saudi would prefer to have him 'on side' on a variety of regional issues -- and may be open to buy arms from Turkey."
Few details about Erdogan's itinerary were made public, and the trip was closed to independent media.
A Turkish official told AFP that Erdogan was not likely to make any formal announcement during the trip, which was expected to stretch into Friday.
Economic interests are "a major, major driver" of Erdogan's visit, said Dina Esfandiary, senior Middle East adviser for the International Crisis Group.
"It looks like Turkey's forgotten about Khashoggi, and I'm sure the Saudis appreciate that," Esfandiary said.
"I'm sure we'll see a statement about how it's time for things to get better, maybe building economic ties and trade, a boost to the Turkish economy thanks to the Saudis," she added.
Turkey has suffered an annual inflation rate topping 60 percent and a wave of winter street protests that have hurt Erdogan's popularity ahead of a general election next year.
Erdogan is now seeking backing from Gulf countries with which he has been at odds in the decade since the Arab Spring revolts.
In February, he travelled to the United Arab Emirates for the first time in nearly a decade, where he called on wealthy business leaders to invest in Turkey.
The last time Erdogan visited Saudi Arabia was in 2017, when he tried to mediate a dispute pitting the kingdom and other Gulf countries against Qatar.
O.Krause--BTB