U.S. intelligence concluded that Mohammed bin Salman “approved an operation in Istanbul to capture or kill the Saudi journalist”. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved of an operation to capture or kill dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi who was murdered in 2018, according to a declassified U.S. intelligence assessment released on Friday in a manner choreographed to limit damage to U.S.-Saudi ties. Riyadh has denied any involvement by the crown prince, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler. "We assess that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman approved an operation in Istanbul, Turkey to capture or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi," the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence said in the report posted on its website. That will restore protocol broken by Trump and his son-in-law and top aide, Jared Kushner, who maintained a direct channel to the crown prince.

Source: The Hindu February 26, 2021 18:22 UTC