August M
As Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman returned to the US for the first time since Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, President Donald Trump moved quickly to shield him from renewed scrutiny
Trump told reporters that the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “knew nothing” about the 2018 killing at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, despite a 2021 US intelligence assessment concluding he had approved the operation, according to BBC reporting.
The crown prince, who has consistently denied involvement, said Saudi Arabia took “all the right steps” in its inquiry, calling the murder “painful” and a “huge mistake”.
Trump bristled when asked about the killing, saying Khashoggi was “extremely controversial” and that critics should not “embarrass our guests”.
The visit marked the crown prince’s first return to Washington since the assassination, which strained diplomatic ties for years reports the BBC.
Renewed contradictions
The 2021 intelligence report, released under President Joe Biden, found Mohammed bin Salman had approved a plan to “capture or kill” the journalist.
While the US imposed sanctions on several Saudi officials, none directly targeted the crown prince.
Reacting to Trump’s remarks, Khashoggi’s widow, Hanan, told BBC Newsnight that the president’s defence contradicted earlier comments by the crown prince himself, who acknowledged taking responsibility in a 2019 60 Minutes interview, BBC reports.
She wrote on X that she seeks a meeting with him, along with an apology and compensation.
Sources: BBC; U.S. Intelligence Community Assessment (2021); CBS 60 Minutes (2019).
