Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman once discussed using “a bullet” on Jamal Khashoggi, despite the royal family trying to distance itself from the dissident Saudi journalist’s murder, according to a report.
Crown Prince Mohammed made the comment in a 2017 conversation intercepted by U.S. intelligence agencies, the New York Times reported Thursday. It was uncovered as the National Security Agency and other agencies examine the crown prince’s voice and text communications as part of an investigation into Khashoggi’s death.
Khashoggi, a critic of the Saudi government who wrote for the Washington Post, was killed on Oct. 2 during a visit to the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul, where he had an appointment to collect paperwork to marry his Turkish fiancee. Once inside the building, he was reportedly greeted by a 15-person team, described as an assassination squad, who strangled him and dismembered his body.
The intercepted discussion between Crown Prince Mohammed and adviser Turki Aldakhil, a former Saudi TV executive, hinged on whether they could lure Khashoggi back to the kingdom with a job. The crown prince, who expressed skepticism that their plan would work, said he would resort to “a bullet” if need be. The official analysis concluded that Crown Prince Mohammed may not have employed the phrase literally, but it indicated the seriousness with which he viewed the threat Khashoggi posed to his reputation. The analysts emphasized that there was no evidence that Aldakhil knew about any plot to capture or kill Khashoggi.
The Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to the Times’ request for comment, while the NSA and the CIA declined to provide a statement. Aldakhil denied the allegations as “categorically false.”
“They appear to be a continuation of various efforts by different parties to connect His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to this horrific crime. These efforts will prove futile,” Aldakhil told the paper.
President Trump has repeatedly downplayed Crown Prince Mohammed’s involvement in Khashoggi’s murder, citing the close financial ties between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. The CIA, however, found last year with “high confidence” that the crown prince was implicated in the plan. The Saudi royal court, for its part, has claimed the columnist was killed in a rogue rendition operation gone wrong.
The Trump administration, which also has a cozy personal relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed through Jared Kushner, has sanctioned 17 Saudis believed to be responsible for Khashoggi’s death; 11 people have also been charged by Saudi prosecutors over his killing, five of whom face the death penalty.
