Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman broke a long silence on the suspected murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the hands of Saudi government agents, denouncing what he called a “heinous crime” but saying nothing of whether he had any role in or knowledge of the plot.
Addressing a major investment conference in Riyadh Wednesday, the crown prince in brief remarks promised a thorough investigation of the matter and said the incident would not drive a wedge between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, where the killing took place Oct. 2.
“Saudi Arabia will go and implement all necessary rules and investigate deeply in order to achieve results,” the crown prince said, speaking in Arabic.
The government will “bring to justice those who were responsible for this heinous crime, and they will be put before the courts. There’s no doubt,” he said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a speech Tuesday put the blame for the death of the U.S.-based Mr. Khashoggi, a frequent critic of the Saudi royal family, squarely on a “hit team” of senior Saudi government officials, but he stopped short of accusing King Salman or the hard-charging 33-year-old crown prince of direct involvement in the incident.
The crown prince seemed to go out of his way to underscore his determination to preserve relations with Ankara.
“We know that many are trying to use this painful thing to drive a wedge between Saudi Arabia and Turkey,” the prince said. “And I want to send them a message: You will never be able to do that.”
Turkey’s state news agency Anadolu and the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) both reported that Crown Prince Mohammed and Mr. Erdogan had spoken directly by phone Wednesday about the Khashoggi case, a call apparently initiated by the Saudi leader.
Saudi Arabia has already taken a number of diplomatic and economic hits from the Khashoggi affair, including strong criticism from President Trump and a range of European leaders.
Many top U.S. and European officials and business leaders canceled plans to attend the high-profile three-day investment conference, seen as key to the prince’s hopes to modernize the country’s economy.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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