Spies dish Saudi dirt

CIA boss to brief leaders on Khashoggi killing ahead of action

CIA director Gina Haspel is headed to Capitol Hill to brief Senate leaders on Tuesday about the slaying of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi as senators weigh their next steps in possibly punishing the longtime Middle East ally over the killing.

The CIA director is set to meet Republican and Democratic Senate leaders, as well as the chairmen and ranking senators on the key national security committees.

Senators from both parties were upset that Ms Haspel was not part of a recent closeddoor session with top administration officials about Mr Khashoggi’s killing and the US response. The briefing included Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.

Mr Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul two months ago. The journalist, who had lived for a time in the US and wrote for The

Washington Post, had been critical of the Saudi regime.

He was killed in what US officials have described as an elaborate plot as he visited the consulate for marriage paperwork.

US intelligence officials have concluded Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman must have at least known of the plot, but US President Donald Trump has equivocated over who was to blame.

Echoing Mr Trump’s public comments on the killing, Mr Pompeo said after last week’s briefing with senators that there was “no direct reporting” connecting the crown prince to the murder.

Questioned about Ms Haspel’s absence from last week’s briefing, a CIA spokesman said that the director had already briefed congressional leaders on Mr Khashoggi and no one was keeping her away.

In another explanation, a White House official said Ms Haspel decided not to participate in part because of frustration with lawmakers leaking classified intelligence from such settings.