A U.S. intelligence report, which is expected to be released on Thursday, is blamed for the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The report, led by the CIA, will set out how the Crown Prince approved and likely ordered the assassination of Khashoggi, four people familiar with its contents told the news service.
Khashoggi, an American journalist from the Washington Post, who in his writings was often critical of the crown prince, was assassinated in 2018 after walking into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Officials believe Saudi agents may have broken Khashoggi’s remains, which have never been found.
The report is part of President Biden
Joe BidenKlain on Manchin’s objection to Neera Tanden: He’s not answering us at the White House ‘Senators gave no timeline on removing the National Guard, the Capitol Fence Overnight Defense: the new chairman of the Senate’s armed services talks about the naming of the Pentagon policy, Afghanistan, more | Biden reads report on Khashoggi murder | Austin emphasizes vaccine safety in new video MORE‘s pressure to reaffirm the US’s relations with Saudi Arabia. He told reporters on Wednesday that he had read the intelligence report but did not speak directly to the crown prince but only to his father, Saudi King Salman.
“We have had contact with Saudi officials on numerous levels in the early weeks of this government,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement to Reuters.
The news service noted that the United Nations’ human rights inquiry in 2018 found that Saudi Arabia was responsible for a ‘deliberate, premeditated trial’ of Khashoggi.
“There is sufficient credible evidence regarding the responsibility of the Crown Prince demanding further investigation,” Agnes Callamard said at the time.
The crown prince has denied any involvement in Khashoggi’s death.