Trump defends Mohammed bin Salman over killing of Jamal Khashoggi, claiming Saudi crown prince 'knew nothing about it' and 'things happen'

An ABC reporter then addresses the elephant in the room, asking whether why Americans should trust bin Salman given that US intelligence concluded that he orchestrated the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Trump blasts ABC News as fake news, before contradicting US intelligence on the Saudi crown prince’s role in Khashoggi death:

"You’re mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial. A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman [Khashoggi] that you’re talking about. Whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen. But he [bin Salman] knew nothing about it. And we can leave it at that. You don’t have to embarrass our guest by asking something like that."

As I noted earlier, US intelligence concluded in 2021 that bin Salman approved the capture or killing of Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

The crown prince denied ordering the operation but acknowledged responsibility as the kingdom’s de facto ruler.

Here’s our report on that from the time:
US finds Saudi crown prince approved Khashoggi murder but does not sanction him
—The Guardian

Did I mention fuck both of those pieces of shit?