WASHINGTON

The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde canceled her plans to attend Future Investment Initiative, an economic conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Move comes amid the ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

"The Managing Director's previously scheduled trip to the Middle East region is being deferred," said a statement by the IMF.

The Future Investment Initiative, hosted under the leadership Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, is set to be held on Oct. 23-25.

Khashoggi has long been feared killed at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul after he entered on Oct. 2 and was never seen exiting.

On that same day, 15 Saudis, including several officials, arrived in Istanbul on two planes and visited the building while Khashoggi was still inside, Turkish police sources said. All of the identified individuals have since left Turkey.

Saudi authorities have yet to give a clear explanation of Khashoggi’s fate, while several countries -- particularly Turkey, the U.S. and the UK -- have expressed their desire that the matter should be elucidated as soon as possible.

Reporting by Gulbin Yildirim:Writing by Tuba Sahin, Can Erozden