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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi a “huge mistake” during his meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House.
Trump described Khashoggi as “extremely controversial,” adding “a lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happened, but he (the prince) knew nothing about it.”
Prince Mohammed said of the murder – by Saudi agents – “it’s painful and it’s a huge mistake, and we are doing our best that this doesn’t happen again.”
The widow of Khashoggi said it was “very painful” that bin Salman will visit the United States on Tuesday.
Hanan Elatr Khashoggi told CNN that it was distressing to see the crown prince received in Washington “as though he were a head of state,” rather than a de facto ruler.
“It will be better if Jamal was here and receiving the crown prince by himself, and meet him and share with him his vision and mission and all his ideas,” she said in the interview aired Monday.
She said Khashoggi had hoped to engage directly with Prince Mohammed before his death. “Jamal actually was waiting for an invitation from the crown prince and wished to have the space to be heard,” she said. “He had good ideas for his country.”
Hanan Elatr Khashoggi said she has written to Trump seeking help in reaching a financial settlement with the crown prince.
The killing “destroyed my life,” she said, expressing hope that Washington would keep human rights and democratic values in mind as it deepens its relationship with Riyadh. “I hope they look at the American values of human rights and democracy” in addition to any weapons or defense deals, she said.
She added that “something is missing,” pointing to the absence of “real justice.”
Khashoggi, a U.S. resident and critic of the Saudi government, was murdered and dismembered inside the consulate in Istanbul. His remains were never found. U.S. intelligence concluded that Prince Mohammed approved the operation.
After a closed-door trial in Saudi Arabia, five Saudis were sentenced to death and three others to prison. The death sentences were later commuted.
