Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved an operation to capture or kill journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, according to a US intelligence report that could further strain US-Saudi relations as the White House reassesses ties with Riyadh, CNBC said today.
The report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, released Friday, cited the crown prince's control of decision-making in Saudi Arabia as well as the involvement of a key advisor and members of the prince's protective detail in the operation that killed Khashoggi, a critic of the royal family.
Also Friday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken imposed visa restrictions on 76 Saudi individuals whom are "believed to have been engaged in threatening dissidents overseas, including but not limited to the Khashoggi killing."
Blinken said the restrictions are part of a new "Khashoggi Ban" that will bar visas for people acting on behalf of a foreign government who are believed to have engaged in "serious, extraterritorial counter-dissident activities."