Senior US Official: Saudi Version of Khashoggi Murder 'Not Credible'
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The US does not believe the official Saudi version of the murder of the Washington Post columnist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi is credible, a senior administration official said.
“The Saudis should have a credible narrative of what happens in the consulate and afterwards," the senior official said, The Guardian reported.
“I don’t think from our point of view, the narrative emerging from the Saudis or the legal process there has yet hit that threshold of credibility and accountability,” he added.
The official said, “We have continued to work this issue with the Saudis, underscoring that it’s in their interest to pursue this as aggressively as they can to get this albatross off their backs and to get out from under the shadow of this incident which has caused such an outcry.”
The Saudi authorities have charged 12 men for the killing on October 2 in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate. Five of the defendants face the death penalty if convicted.
The CIA has assessed that the killing was ordered by the crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman, a conclusion endorsed by the US Senate, but US President Donald Trump and his senior officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have continued to insist the evidence against the prince, a key partner in the administration’s Middle East policy, is inconclusive.
