(UTV|COLOMBO) – US intelligence officials have concluded that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a US official said Friday (16). The Saudi government has denied the claim.
The conclusion will bolster efforts in Congress to further punish the close US ally for the killing. The Trump administration this week sanctioned 17 Saudi officials for their alleged role in the killing, but lawmakers have called on the administration to curtail arms sales to Saudi Arabia or take other harsher punitive measures.
The US official familiar with the intelligence agencies’ conclusion was unauthorized to speak publicly about it and spoke on condition of anonymity. It was first reported by The Washington Post. Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat has said the crown prince had “absolutely” nothing to do with the killing.
Khashoggi, a Saudi who lived in the United States, was a columnist for the Post and often criticized the royal family. He was killed Oct. 2 at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Turkish and Saudi authorities say he was killed inside the consulate by a team from the kingdom after he went there to get marriage documents.
This week, US intelligence officials briefed members of the Senate and House intelligence committees and the Treasury Department announced economic sanctions on 17 Saudi officials suspected of being responsible for or complicit in the killing.
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