Saudi prince calls writer’s murder ‘heinous’ crime
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made a fiery appearance Wednesday at his country’s Future Investment Initiative economic forum. He called the killing of 59-year-old journalist Jamal Khashoggi “heinous” and “painful to all Saudis.”
Khashoggi had lived in selfimposed exile in the U.S. for nearly a year before his death, and had written critically, in the Washington Post and elsewhere, of the young prince’s crackdown on dissent.
After the journalist’s Oct. 2 murder inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, and after Turkish reports said a member of the prince’s entourage was involved in the crime, many international business leaders had pulled out of this economic forum, and Western media outlets withdrew. Still, thousands of forum attendees rose to their feet to applaud the 33-year-old heir.
Having spoken to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by phone before the forum, the prince said, “The situation that took place is very painful to all Saudis ... and I suspect it is painful to anyone in the whole world.” He added that the Saudis are cooperating with Turkey on the Khashoggi investigation and cautioned against anyone trying “to manipulate the situation” and sow division between Riyadh and Ankara.
“They will not be able to do that,” he said, “as long as there is a king called Salman bin Abdul-Aziz and a crown prince called Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi, and a president in Turkey called Erdogan.” Applause followed.
On the other hand, on Wednesday, in Ankara, Erdogan said: “We are determined not to allow the murder to be covered up and for those responsible — from the person who gave the order to those who executed it — not to escape justice.”
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s position, without offering evidence, is that the Saudi team in Turkey went rogue. In that vein, 18 Saudis have been arrested, and five top officials, some of whom worked directly under the crown prince, have been fired.
King Salman and Prince Mohammed met Tuesday with Khashoggi’s son Salah and the journalist’s brother Sahel. According to state-run Saudi news, which distributed photos of the event, the royals expressed condolences. A friend of the Khashoggi family, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Associated Press that Salah has been under a travel ban since last year.
Despite many attendance cancellations, the forum spotlighted regional allies who have rushed to support the crown prince They included Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Dubai’s ruler, Jordan’s king and Pakistan’s prime minister. Some $55 billion in energy and other agreements were signed at the forum.
Several U.S. participants reflected general nervousness among the Americans. “This experience has given everyone pause … to stop, get our breath, take stock and then figure out the most appropriate way forward,” David Hamod, president and CEO of the National U.S.Arab Chamber of Commerce, told the AP.
“At the end of the day, many American companies have stakeholders and shareholders to which they need to be very sensitive. So they will listen to those stakeholders and shareholders,” Hamod said.