Turkish police are searching a forest on the outskirts of Istanbul and a city near the Sea of Marmara for remains of a Saudi dissident journalist who disappeared two weeks ago after entering the Saudi consulate, two Turkish officials said.

A small group of Turkish investigators are examining the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Wednesday, a Reuters photographer said, the second such search this week of the premises after Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared two weeks ago.

A team of Turkish investigators entered the Saudi consul’s Istanbul residence on Wednesday, a Reuters cameraman at the scene said, as part of the investigation into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Some materials at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul where journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared two weeks ago have been painted over, Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended Saudi Arabia from what he characterized as efforts to condemn Riyadh over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi before all the facts were known, telling the Associated Press in an interview it was a case of "guilty until proven innocent."

Saudi Arabia's consul general in Istanbul left Turkey for Riyadh on Tuesday, Turkish broadcasters said.

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican close to President Donald Trump, on Tuesday accused Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of ordering the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and called him a "rogue crown prince" who is jeopardizing relations with the United States.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde has deferred a planned trip to the Middle East, which included a stop in Riyadh to attend an investment conference, the IMF said in a statement on Tuesday.

Bahrain’s foreign minister called for a boycott of the ride-hailing company Uber Technologies after its chief executive officer said he will not attend a business conference in the kingdom’s ally Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi embassy in Washington on Monday canceled its annual National Day reception in an email that gave no explanation for the move, which comes amid a diplomatic crisis over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.

Saudi Arabia is preparing a report that would admit Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed as the result of an interrogation that went wrong, CNN reports, citing two unnamed sources.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday dispatched U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman over the unexplained disappearance of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and raised the possibility that “rogue killers” could have been responsible.

Saudi Arabia is preparing to acknowledge the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a botched interrogation, CNN and the New York Times said on Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump speculated “rogue killers” may be responsible.

Scott Donnelly, chief executive of Textron Arms, said it was safe to say there would not be many deals with Saudi Arabia in the near future as journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared.

Alphabet Inc’s Google on Monday became the latest company to drop out of a business conference in Saudi Arabia.

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa made a phone call with his Saudi counterpart King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during which he affirmed Bahrain's strong solidarity with Saudi Arabia.

Bahraini Minister of Foreign Affairs Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa said that his country supports Saudi Arabia and attacked the Qatari Al-Jazeera channel, saying that it is not possible to reconcile with Qatar’s policy.

Saudi Arabia’s shares plunged as much as 7 percent on Sunday as investors worried about deteriorating relations with the international community after the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Saudi Arabia on Sunday warned against threats to punish it over last week’s disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as European leaders piled on pressure and two more U.S. executives scrapped plans to attend a Saudi investor conference.

Saudi Arabia must cooperate with the investigation into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and let Turkish officials enter its Istanbul consulate, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Saturday.