President Trump mentioned Tuesday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, often called MBS, “knew nothing” in regards to the 2018 homicide of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, regardless of a 2021 intelligence report discovering bin Salman ordered the killing.
“You are mentioning anyone that was extraordinarily controversial,” Mr. Trump mentioned about Khashoggi in response to a query from a journalist about his enterprise dealings with bin Salman regardless of the intelligence report’s findings. “Lots of people did not like that gentleman that you simply’re speaking about, whether or not you want him or did not like him, issues occur, however he knew nothing about it and we will depart it at that.”
Sitting subsequent to Mr. Trump within the Oval Workplace whereas visiting the White Home, bin Salman mentioned, “In regards to the journalist, it is actually painful to listen to that anybody dropping his life for no actual goal.” The crown prince additionally mentioned, “We did all the precise steps by way of investigation, and many others., in Saudi Arabia and we have improved our system to ensure that nothing occurred like that.”
“It is painful and it is an enormous mistake, and we’re doing our greatest that may by no means occur once more,” bin Salman mentioned.
Bin Salman is making his first go to to the White Home since Khashoggi’s homicide. Bin Salman has denied any involvement, however he instructed CBS Information’ Norah O’Donnell in a 2019 “60 Minutes” interview, “I take full duty as a frontrunner in Saudi Arabia, particularly because it was dedicated by people working for the Saudi authorities.”
The 2021 U.S. intelligence report concluded that “the Crown Prince has had absolute management over the Kingdom’s safety and intelligence organizations, making it extremely unlikely that Saudi officers would have carried out an operation of this nature with out the Crown Prince’s authorization.”
After Mr. Trump’s feedback Tuesday, Khashoggi’s widow, Hanan Khashoggi, directed a message on social media to him, writing, “There isn’t a justification to homicide my husband.”
“Whereas Jamal was an excellent clear and courageous man many individuals could not have agreed along with his opinions and want for freedom of the press,” she wrote.
Mr. Trump insisted he has “nothing to do” along with his household’s enterprise dealings with Saudi Arabia, and insisted “they’ve finished little or no with Saudi Arabia, truly.”
Mr. Trump known as bin Salman his pal and praised him as “unimaginable on human rights and every part else” because the Saudi royal made his first go to to the White Home since Khashoggi’s killing.
As households of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist assault have pursued a civil lawsuit alleging the dominion sponsored, aided and supported the al Qaeda hijackers, bin Salman has sought to distance the Saudi authorities from the assault.
“I really feel painful about, you understand, households of 9/11 in America, however you understand, we now have to give attention to actuality,” bin Salman mentioned Tuesday. “Actuality primarily based on CIA paperwork and primarily based on a number of paperwork that Osama bin Laden used Saudi folks in that occasion for one goal: To destroy this relation, the American-Saudi relationship.”
Bin Salman mentioned that “whoever buys that” is “serving to Osama bin Laden’s goal of destroying this relation.” Bin Salman mentioned bin Laden knew the “sturdy” relationship between America and Saudi Arabia is “dangerous for extremism.”
Bin Salman and Mr. Trump introduced Tuesday that Saudi Arabia will improve its investments of $600 billion within the U.S. to just about $1 trillion.
