Saudi Arabia has warned criticism of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is a “ red line” , after Donald Trump heaped praise on the kingdom in defiance of warnings he was giving Riyadh a pass on a journalist ’ s grisly murder . Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al -Jubeir said on Wednesday that calls for the crown prince to be held accountable for the grisly killing of Jamal Khashoggi would not be tolerated . His comments came as the US president praised Saudi Arabia for keeping oil prices low — one strand of his argument against punishing Riyadh even though the CIA reportedly found strong evidence that the crown prince , the de facto Saudi leader , was involved in the murder. “ In Saudi Arabia our leadership is a red line.
The custodian of the two holy mosques ( King Salman) and the crown prince are a red line, ” Jubeir told the BBC . “ They represent every Saudi citizen and every Saudi citizen represents them . And we will not tolerate any discussion of anything that is disparaging towards our monarch or our crown prince. ”
Khashoggi, a US resident who wrote for The Washington Post and had been critical of Prince Mohammed, was lured to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, killed and reportedly dismembered . After lengthy denials, Saudi authorities admitted responsibility and said 21 people had been taken into custody. However , a CIA analysis leaked to the US media went further , reportedly pointing the finger at the crown prince. But Trump, on holiday at his Florida Mar – a- Lago Club on Wednesday, doubled down on a statement from Tuesday that he was essentially ignoring the killing of Khashoggi because of what he said were more important US strategic and commercial interest “ Oil prices getting lower . Great ! Like a big Tax Cut for America and the World . Enjoy! $54, was just $82, ” he tweeted . “ Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let ’ s go lower !” Jubeir insisted that Prince Mohammed had not been involved in the killing . “ We have made that very clear .
We have investigations ongoing and we will punish the individuals who are responsible for this , ” he said . He called on Turkey to come forward with all its evidence about the slaying and stop leaking out information. The foreign minister said the murder was a “ rogue operation ” by intelligence officers. Jubeir also said any possible US sanctions on Saudi Arabia would be short -sighted .
Source: punch
