The Senate Intelligence Committee unanimously passed a bill Tuesday requiring the release of details about the death of slain Saudi dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, said a provision related to Khashoggi’s murder was included in an intelligence authorization act approved by committee members in a 15-0 vote.
Offered alongside measures meant to protect whistleblowers and address the national security implications of foreign technology, the Khashoggi provision requires the U.S. intelligence community to release an unclassified report identifying who “carried out, participated in, or were otherwise complicit in or responsible” for his death, according to Mr. Wyden’s office.
“This bill is an important step forward in supporting Intelligence Community whistleblowers, protecting our communications and pushing for transparency and accountability for the brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi,” said Mr. Wyden, a senior member of the Senate committee.
“These provisions and others from the Fiscal Year 2018 and 2019 also advanced today by the committee bills make our country safer from cyber attacks, help those who report waste fraud and abuse in the Intelligence Community and advance the country’s efforts against the threats from Russia and Saudi Arabia,” he said in a statement.
A staunch critic of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman, Khashoggi was killed after entering a Saudi consulate building in Turkey on October 2, 2018. He was 59.
Senators briefed late last year by the head of the CIA about Khashoggi’s death told reporters afterward that they were convinced that the Saudi crown prince was responsible.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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