The meteoric rise of Saudi's powerful Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is now suspected of ordering the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi

REUTERS/Amir Levy

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud attends a meeting at the United Nations headquarters in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., March 27, 2018.

The Turkish government reportedly told US officials on Thursday that it has audio and video recordings suggesting the Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi was killed during his visit to the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul last week.

Khashoggi, who lived in Virginia under self-imposed exile, was an outspoken critic of Saudi Arabia and its de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Turkish authorities also believe that Khashoggi was killed on orders from the "highest levels" of the royal court, but bin Salman told Bloomberg last week that, "We have nothing to hide."

Few people had heard of bin Salman before his father, Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, became king in 2015.

King Salman, 79, subsequently elevated bin Salman, 33, to crown prince last June. And he has since been widely seen as the driving force behind an anti-corruption purge that has locked up several leading Saudi government and business leaders.

Here's the story behind bin Salman's meteoric rise.