Saudi crown prince 'said he had a bullet for Jamal Khashoggi'

Slain: journalist Jamal Khashoggi
REUTERS

Saudi Arabia's crown prince threatened to go after Jamal Khashoggi with a bullet a year before the dissident journalist was murdered, according to a new report.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s alleged comments to an aide in 2017 were intercepted by American intelligence agencies, the New York Times reported.

Analysts were said to have believed the Saudi ruler did not necessarily mean to have Mr Khashoggi shot, but thought it showed his intent to have him killed.

The conversation took place between Crown Prince Mohammed and an aide, Turki Aldakhil, in September 2017 – about 13 months before the killing, the paper said.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s alleged comments to an aide in 2017 were intercepted by American intelligence agencies, according to the New York Times
REUTERS

He allegedly said that if the Washington Post columnist could not be enticed to return from his self-imposed exile in the US to Saudi Arabia, then he should be brought back by force. If neither of those methods worked, then he would go after Mr Khashoggi “with a bullet”, the paper claimed.

Riyadh, which initially denied knowledge of Mr Khashoggi’s disappearance before offering contradictory explanations, has steadfastly insisted the prince was not involved in the killing.

Representatives for the Saudi Embassy in Washington, the CIA and the National Security Agency did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the New York Times story.

US intelligence agencies believe the crown prince ordered an operation to kill Mr Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.

He disappeared after entering the building to collect documents for his wedding to Turkish fiancée Hatice Cengiz.

Turkish prosecutors claim he was strangled and his body dismembered. His remains have never been recovered.

The New York Times report was published on the eve of a congressional deadline for the White House to submit a report on whether Crown Prince Mohammed ordered Mr Khashoggi’s killing and if it intends to impose sanctions on him.

Washington has sanctioned 17 Saudi officials for their role in the journalist’s death, but US President Donald Trump has said he stands by the crown prince.

A UN-led inquiry into Mr Khashoggi’s killing said yesterday that evidence pointed to a brutal crime “planned and perpetrated” by Saudi officials.

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