By Elishya Perera
WASHINGTON (CU)_A declassified intelligence assessment by the United States, expected to be released on Thursday (Feb 25), would reveal Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had approved the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, Reuters reported.
Citing four officials familiar with the matter, the news agency said that according to the report, the Crown Prince had approved and likely ordered the murder of The Washington Post columnist who had often criticised the Crown Prince’s policies.
The release of the report is part of US President Joe Biden’s policy to restore Washington’s relationship with Riyadh to traditional lines, after giving the Arab ally a pass on its human rights record, particularly during the Trump administration.
Meanwhile, President Biden told reporters on Wednesday that he had read the report and intends to speak to Saudi Arabian King Salman, father of the Crown Prince and de facto ruler.
Jamal Khashoggi, 59-year-old Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist, was killed by a team of operatives linked to the crown prince on October 2, 2018. Although his body was reported to be dismembered that day, his remains were never found.
Meanwhile, Riyadh claimed that the journalist was killed in an extradition operation gone wrong. Nevertheless, the Middle Eastern nation denied any involvement by the Crown Prince in the incident, and gave the death penalty to five other men in relation to the murder instead. Their sentences were also later commuted to 20 years in prison on account of a pardon received from Khashoggi’s family.
In 2019, UN human rights investigator, Agnes Callamard, however, called for further investigation into the incident, and after a six-month probe, she claimed that there was “sufficient credible evidence” which linked the Crown Prince to the murder.
Despite calls by lawmakers and human rights groups for the release of a declassified version of the report, however, the Trump administration rejected these demands, in an attempt to preserve cooperation with Riyadh, amid rising tensions with Iran, and in order to promote US arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Nevertheless, during his presidential campaign last year, Biden pledged to reassess Washington’s relations with Riyadh, in part over Khashoggi’s murder. Since taking office, he has suspended every form of support to Saudia Arabia, in relation to offensive operations that are being carried out in Yemen, including the sale of arms. The US leader has also appointed a special envoy strengthen diplomatic efforts to end that gruelling civil war in the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula.
