The final words uttered by murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi as he was attacked by a Saudi hit squad were, "I can't breathe", according to CNN.
Quoting a source, who read a translated transcript of the audio recording of Khashoggi's last moments in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, CNN said the October 2 killing of the Washington Post columnist was a premeditated plan.
The audio was prepared by Turkish intelligence officials who never clearly said how they obtained the audio. CNN says that their source read a translated version and that the person was briefed on the investigation.
Sounds include voices which are attributed to Dr. Salah Muhammad al-Tubaiqi, the head of forensic medicine at Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry, and Maher Abdulaziz Mutreb, a former Saudi diplomat and intelligence official working for Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
As soon as Khashoggi entered the consulate to collect papers he needed to marry his fiancee Hatice Cengiz, he is met by Mutreb, whom he knows from his days working at the Saudi Embassy in London.
Khashoggi realises that something is not right and asks Mutreb what he is doing there. "You are coming back," Mutreb says. "You can't do that," Khashoggi replies. "People are waiting outside."
The transcript then says that several people set upon Khashoggi at this moment and next sounds indicate that Khashoggi is fighting for air. "I can't breathe," Khashoggi says. "I can't breathe." "I can't breathe."
The three times that Khashoggi can be heard on the audio saying he cannot breathe clearly overrules explanations that he accidentally choked to death.
The transcript further notes Khashoggi's screams as "screams" two times and then a final "gasping".
Subsequent noises, according to CNN's source, indicate that Khashoggi's body was dismembered. The transcript notes the sounds of a body being dismembered by a saw. The transcript eerily describes these sounds as "saw" and "cutting".
As reported earlier, Tubaiqi can be heard advising his companions in the room to listen to music as they carry out the task of cutting up the body.
The transcript also notes three phone calls made by Mutreb. He is heard updating someone with details of what has transpired at each step.
The transcript is short, but is reflective of the planned manner in which the hit team executed its assassination. It also questions the explanations given by Saudi officials on Khashoggi's murder. Just like the accidental choking claim is proven false, suggestions that Khashoggi was drugged by the hit team also falls flat.
But nothing in the transcript ties the crown prince directly to the murder. The lasting conclusion that the CNN source formed after reading the transcript was that "Khashoggi's killing was a planned assassination by an organised team that carried out its job with ruthless efficiency, keeping someone in Riyadh informed at each step."
