Senator Lindsey Graham
The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman is "complicit" in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a senator said Tuesday.
Senator Lindsey Graham said the de facto ruler of the kingdom was surely responsible for the Saudi journalist's death.
"The crown prince, is a wrecking ball. I think he’s complicit in the murder of Khashoggi to the highest level possible," Graham told reporters after an intelligence briefing by CIA Director Gina Haspel.
Haspel briefed a small group of senators on the killing of Khashoggi, after an outcry by lawmakers for her absence last week during a Senate briefing on Yemen that was attended by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton.
The CIA has yet to make a public comment on the killing, but reports said that the agency concluded the crown prince ordered the murder.
Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and columnist for The Washington Post, went missing after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.
Russian President Vladimir Putin walked up to Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a summit of G20 world leaders, high-fived him and then shook his hand heartily. Moments earlier the prince had been pictured on the far edge of the traditional "family portrait" photograph, ignored by other leaders.The two moments captured the dilemma facing world leaders at the Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires this weekend: How to deal with the crown prince, who is dogged by controversy over the murder of a Saudi journalist but is also de facto leader of a rich, oil-producing kingdom that is a major global investor.To be sure Putin's exuberant greeting of the prince was seen as over the top and promptly went viral. But, while leaders appeared to ignore Prince Mohammed on stage during the "family photo," many went on to have closed-door bilateral meetings with him during the two-day summit.The crown prince, facing a global outcry over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul six weeks ago, had conversations with at least 12 world leaders.G20 to negotiate communique 'until last minute', yet to discuss climate changeEuropeans say G20 members agree to reform WTO in draft communiqueThree of them, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron, said publicly they had pressed Prince Mohammed for a full investigation into the murder.Saudi Arabia has said the prince had no prior knowledge of the murder of the prominent Saudi journalist. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said the killing was ordered by the highest level of Saudi leadership but probably not from King Salman, putting the spotlight instead on the 33-year-old crown prince.Trudeau said he had a frank conversation with the prince at a leaders' dinner on Friday, telling him there was "a need for better answers on the killing of Khashoggi." May said she called for a full, credible and transparent investigation, while Macron insisted the crown prince allow international investigators to take part in any inquiry.U.S. President Donald Trump, who has defended U.S. ties with Saudi Arabia, "exchanged pleasantries" with the crown prince, the White House said. Trump has said it may never be known if Prince Mohammed ordered the killing or not. Sources say the CIA believes the crown prince ordered the killing.Saudi Crown Prince sidelined in G20 family photoPutin warmly greets Saudi crown prince at G20 summitNo DiscussionThe crown prince also discussed investments and economic partnerships with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Readouts of those meetings did not say whether Xi and Modi had confronted the prince over the Khashoggi case."China firmly supports Saudi Arabia in its drive for economic diversification and social reform, and will continue to stick together with Saudi Arabia on issues involving their core interests," Xi said, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.Modi and Prince Mohammed discussed scaling up investments in India’s tech, farm and energy sectors, according to an Indian official and the Saudi news agency (SPA).Turkish president meets Dutch, Chinese leaders at G20Before the start of the gathering, Argentinian President Mauricio Macri had said it was possible that the accusations against the crown prince could be discussed when the leaders convened.In the end, they were not.Days before the start of the summit, Human Rights Watch called on Argentina to use a war crimes clause in its constitution to investigate any involvement by the crown prince in possible crimes against humanity in Yemen, where a Saudi-led military campaign is under way, and Khashoggi’s murder.The federal prosecutor's office assigned to review the case had not announced whether a formal investigation would be opened by the close of the summit on Saturday.Turkey's president meets with other leaders at G20Thousands protest G20 policies as world leaders meet
A high-five from Putin and that awkward photograph: Saudi prince's G20 summit
After initially saying he had left the consulate alive, weeks later the Saudi administration admitted he was killed there.
Graham said bin Salman and Saudi Arabia were two separate entities, and the crown prince could not serve as a reliable partner to the U.S.
"I find it very difficult to be able to do business because I think he’s crazy. I think he is dangerous, and he has put the relationship at risk," he said. "I cannot support arms sales to Saudi Arabia as long he is gonna be in charge of this country. The war in Yemen has gotten out of control."
Senator Bob Corker, one of eight senators at the briefing, also told reporters he believed bin Salman was responsible for the murder.
"If he was in front of a jury he’d be convicted in 30 minutes, guilty," said Corker.
"I have zero question in my mind that the crown prince, MBS, ordered the killing, monitored the killing," he added, referring to bin Salman by his initials.
In response to a comment made by Bolton, Graham said there was no smoking gun, but there was a "smoking saw," referring to reports a bone saw was used to dismember Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate.
The CIA claims that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman may have ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in messages he sent to leader of killing squad, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday."At least 11 messages to his closest adviser, who oversaw the team that killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi, in the hours before and after the journalist’s death in October,” it said, citing a classified CIA assessment.The crown prince told his close circle last August that if they failed to bring back Khashoggi "we could lure him outside Saudi Arabia and make arrangements".Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist working for The Washington Post, was killed shortly after he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2.Saudi, UAE step up support for PKK terrorists in northeast SyriaSaudi Crown Prince sidelined in G20 family photoAfter weeks of saying he had left the consulate alive, the Saudi administration later admitted he was killed there, blaming his death on a group of rogue Saudi operatives.According to the CIA document, the messages were sent to Saud al-Qahtani, who was the top aide of the crown prince.“Qahtani supervised the 15-man team that killed Mr. Khashoggi and, during the same period, was also in direct communication with the team’s leader in Istanbul, the assessment says,” the Journal reported.Putin warmly greets Saudi crown prince at G20 summitThe U.S. in November put sanctions on 17 people tied to the killing of Khashoggi, including al-Qahtani.In the following days, the CIA concluded that Khashoggi's murder was ordered by the Saudi crown prince.Rejecting the reports, U.S. President Donald Trump, who is accused of close ties with bin Salman, said "may be he did and maybe he didn't".Macron says global experts needed for Khashoggi probesUK PM May to be robust with Saudi Crown Prince on Khashoggi killing
Saudi crown prince ordered Khashoggi's killing: report
Saudi Arabia told the World Trade Organization on Tuesday that national security concerns meant it "simply will not engage in dispute settlement procedures" in an intellectual property dispute with Qatar, according to a transcript seen by reporters.Qatar launched the dispute in October, saying Saudi Arabia was blocking Qatari-owned broadcaster beIN and refusing to take effective action against the piracy of beIN content by a sophisticated pirate operation called "beoutQ".Representatives of the United States, Egypt and Bahrain supported the Saudi position at a WTO dispute settlement meeting, while European Union and Turkish diplomats spoke up in support of Qatar, a Geneva trade official said.Saudi energy minister says OPEC's deal to cut output uncertain: BBG
Saudi Arabia refuses to engage in WTO dispute brought by Qatar