Slapping 17 Saudi officials with sanctions over the Oct. 2 murder of 59-year-old Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, the U.S. government accepted the Saudi Prosecutor who cleared 33-year-old Defense Minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi’s ailing 82-year-old King Salman has done everything possible to protect his son from any culpability in the covert operation that killed Khashoggi for writing critical commentary about his autocratic rule. News today that Saudi’s chief prosecutor Sheikh Shaalan al-Shaalan cleared Bin Salman shows the extent to which the Kingdom has moved quickly to clear Bin Salman. Riyadh officially blames Khashoggi’s death on rogue operation not authorized by King Salman or Crown Prince Bin Salman in Khashoggi’s premeditated murder. Al-Shaalan said he’s moving quickly to punish the perpetrators in Khashoggi’s gruesome death.
Al-Shaalan said that 11 of the 21 Saudi officials currently in custody for Khashoggi’s death have been indicted and face the death penalty. Freezing the assets of al the men currently in custody does nothing to punish Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. With a tight grip on the Kingdom, many experts believe it’s inconceivable that Bin Salman could not have authorized the operation to kill Khashoggi. President Donald Trump has been reluctant to rush to judgment, hoping to save billions in arms contracts with Riyadh. Chief Prosecutor al-Shaalan has indicted Saudi’s deputy chief of intelligence Ahmed al-Asri for conducting the covert operation without the knowledge of Defense Minister Bin Salman. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R.S.C.) and Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) called on Trump to cancel billions of dollars in arms sales, until the Kingdom accepted responsibility.
Since Khashoggi disappeared Oct. 2, the Saudi government changed its stories repeatedly until finally settling on the notion of a rogue operation. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erodogan applied maximum pressure on the Kingdom to own up to the real facts of Khashoggi’s murder. Turkey circulated audiotapes that confirmed that Khashoggi was drugged, suffocated, dismembered and disposed of on Oct. 2. Al-Shaalan has slated numerous individuals connected with the operation for prosecution and eventual execution. Killing all of the members of the 15-member Saudi hit squad that killed Khashoggi hopes to erase any attempt for anyone involved to give the real story, especially who authorized the operation. When you consider Bin Salman’s firm grip on the Kingdom, if he didn’t authorize the operation it would reflect even more unfavorably on the Crown Prince.
Executing all living members in any way connected with Khashoggi’s death tries to bury the investigation for posterity. With all of Riyadh’s moves, it’s difficult for U.S. officials to oppose Saudi attempts to bury the Khashoggi affair. Erdogan did everything possible to get Saudi Arabia to accept responsibility for Khashoggi’s death, especially because the operation took place on Turkish soil. Members of Congress can speculate all they want about whom gave the order to kill Khashoggi but compelling evidence has been deliberately compromised, rushing to find scapegoats to protect Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salaman. “The United States continues to diligently work to ascertain all of the facts and will hold accountable each of those we find responsible in order to achieve justice for Khashoggi’s finacee, children and the family he leaves behind,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
White House officials continue to let Saudi Arabia take the lead in prosecuting anyone connected with Khashoggi’s death, all in an attempt to cover up Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s role in ordering the murder. Rushing to prosecute the 15 Saudi operatives involved in the operation prevents U.S. or foreign law enforcement from interviewing witnesses to get to the bottom of Khashoggi’s murder. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed that the U.S. “will continue to seek all relevant facts, consult Congress, and world with other nations to hold accountable those involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi”. Without examining crime scene evidence or interviewing witnesses, the U.S. and other countries have no way to disprove the Saudi narrative that King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had nothing to do with Khashoggic’s death.
Telling the press today that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was not heard on the Khashoggi tapes, national Security Adviser John Bolton indicated that the White House was satisfied with Riyadh’s explanation. “I have not listened to the tape myself, but in the assessment of those who have listened to it, it does not, in any way, link the crown prince to the killing,” Bolton said. Listening to Khasoggi’s murder would not reference anyone, other than hearing Khashoggi gasping for air while getting strangled. White House officials have rushed to accept the official Saudi explanation. “Absolutely, the royal highness, the crown prince has nothing to do with this issue,” said U.S.-educated Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir. Whatever the official Saudi position on Khashoggi’s death, it’s inconceivable that the all-powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was not involved.