King fuels ‘rogue killers’ theory
Donald Trump suggested yesterday that ‘‘rogue killers’’ might be responsible for murdering Jamal Khashoggi, the missing journalist, after speaking to the Saudi king on the phone.
The US president said King Salman had ‘‘firmly denied’’ that the Saudi state was behind the alleged killing.
He also dispatched Mike Pompeo, his secretary of state, to fly to Riyadh to meet the king and seek answers about Khashoggi’s alleged murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
‘‘I don’t want to get into his [King Salman’s] mind but it sounded to me like maybe it could have been rogue killers, who knows? We’re going to try get to the bottom of it very soon, but his was a flat denial,’’ Trump said.
His comments came as Saudi Arabia was last night said to be preparing to admit that Khashoggi died as a result of an interrogation that went wrong, according to reports in the US.
Turkish officials had speculated that the Saudi government would blame ‘‘rogue’’ elements of its security services as a way of insulating Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince, from international criticism.
Trump’s reference to the theory is likely to further fuel speculation that Riyadh will blame individual Saudi operatives for Khashoggi’s disappearance, while denying that there was any government order to kill him.
After meeting the Turkish foreign minister yesterday, Jeremy Hunt, the British foreign secretary, said: ‘‘There remain questions about Mr Khashoggi that only Saudi Arabia can answer.’’
Meanwhile, a joint TurkishSaudi team began their first search of the Istanbul consulate. Saudi officials had reportedly resisted allowing Turkish police into the consulate after learning that investigators planned to use Luminol, a forensic chemical that reveals bloodstains even if they have been washed clean. The search team did not appear to be carrying equipment and it was not clear whether they would carry out a forensic investigation.
Several hours before the searchers arrived, journalists spotted a cleaning crew going inside the consulate. King Salman also ordered prosecutors to launch an internal Saudi probe into Khashoggi’s disappearance.
The opening of the probe and the consulate search marked a new flurry of activity on the Saudi side, after two weeks in which Riyadh has done little except deny responsibility.
The apparent shift in the Saudi position came as the kingdom remained under intense pressure from Washington and business leaders over the case.
The White House said it expected Saudi Arabia to carry out ‘‘a swift and transparent’’ investigation ‘‘this week’’.
Larry Kudlow, Trump’s economic adviser, said the US would take ‘‘stern action’’ if necessary’’ and brushed off Riyadh’s threats to drive up oil prices if America tried to impose sanctions.
Meanwhile, the chiefs of Blackstone and BlackRock, two major US investment firms, joined an exodus of executives pulling out of Crown Prince’s ‘‘Davos in the Desert’’ summit.
A number of major media outlets have also pulled out of the forum.
Those sceptical about Saudi Arabia criticised Trump for invoking the ‘‘rogue killers’’ theory, suggesting that he was falling for a Saudi ploy.
‘‘Been hearing the ridiculous ‘rogue killers’ theory was where the Saudis would go with this. Absolutely extraordinary they were able to enlist the president as their PR agent to float it,’’ said Chris Murphy, a Democrat senator.
Dr Neil Quilliam, senior research fellow at Chatham House, an international affairs think tank, said it was ‘‘highly unlikely’’ that senators would buy the rogue killers theory.