Saudi Crown Prince Implicated in Khashoggi Murder, U.S. Finds

A U.S. intelligence report expected to be declassified as soon as Friday implicates Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in approving the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, according to a person familiar with the findings.

The report builds on classified intelligence from the CIA and other agencies after Khashoggi’s murder in October 2018 inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the report hasn’t yet been released. It wasn’t immediately clear how much detail the declassified version of the report will provide on Prince Mohammed’s role.

The decision to release the report, compiled by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, reflects the Biden administration’s determination to recalibrate relations with Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, over its human rights record.

In advance of publication, President Joe Biden held a call Thursday with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman. Biden discussed regional security and the renewed U.S. and United Nations effort to end the war in Yemen. He also “affirmed the importance the United States places on universal human rights and the rule of law,” the White House said in a statement.

Prince Mohammed has denied any involvement in the killing, while saying he accepts symbolic responsibility as the country’s de facto ruler. Saudi officials have said the murder was carried out by rogue agents who have since been prosecuted.

State Department spokesman Ned Price declined to comment when asked about the report Thursday but suggested that the U.S. was looking at other ways to punish the perpetrators. Among the options may be cutting back arms sales to Saudi Arabia and imposing sanctions, he said without elaborating.

“I expect that we will be in a position before long to speak to steps to promote accountability going forward for this horrific crime,” Price told reporters in Washington.

Saudi authorities didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Biden’s decision to release the report, or the possibility that the U.S. could impose sanctions on one of its closest and most important Middle East allies. Saudi Arabia dominates the Gulf Arab region geographically, is its economic powerhouse and has for decades been a political heavyweight in regional affairs.

Goods and services trade between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia amounted to almost $39 billion in 2019, with American exports totaling about $24 billion and imports reaching nearly $15 billion, according to U.S. government figures. That made Saudi Arabia the U.S.’s 27th-largest goods trading partner but it is one of the biggest customers for American arms.

The decision to release the report, which was withheld by the Trump administration, reflects a return, under Biden, to routine diplomatic channels and traditional U.S. pressure over human rights, even on allies. For Prince Mohammed and his inner circle, the key will be whether the report provides any new findings beyond the largely circumstantial evidence that is already known.

Former President Donald Trump put Saudi Arabia at the center of his Middle East strategy, making it his first foreign visit as he abandoned the 2015 nuclear deal with a common enemy, Iran, and reimposed sanctions on Tehran.

Trump dismissed concerns about whether the crown prince approved the Khashoggi killing -- “Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t,” he said -- citing the economic rewards of selling arms to the Saudis. His secretary of state, Michael Pompeo, said the U.S. had “no direct evidence” linking the prince to the murder while Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner maintained a close working relationship with him.

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