President Trump protected Saudi Crown Prince over Jamal Khoshoggi murder

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US President Donald Trump bragged that he protected Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman from US scrutiny following the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The upcoming book of Bob Woodward said, “I saved his a**”. An advance copy of Rage obtained by Business Insider says that President Trump boasted in 2018 following the American’s murder. It says, “I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop”. A Washington Post writer, Khashoggi was known for criticizing Saudi Arabia. The Central Intelligence Agency said that he was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey in 2018. He was assassinated at the personal order of the Crown Prince.

Woodward informed in an interview about 3 months later on 22 January and said that staff at The Washington Post was upset about the gruesome murder. President said, “Yeah, but Iran is killing 36 people a day, so”. Woodward wrote that he steered the conversation back to the murder and continued pressing the president on the Crown Prince’s alleged role in ordering the assassination. President Trump is quoted as saying, “Well, I understand what you’re saying, and I’ve gotten involved very much. I know everything about the whole situation. He will always say that he didn’t do it”. He added, “He says that to everybody, and frankly I’m happy that he says that. But he will say that to you, he will say that to Congress, and he will say that to everybody. He’s never said he did it”.

Woodward was asked if Trump believed he did it. He said the president said the prince insisted that he didn’t. “I know, but do you really believe”. Woodward started before he was cut off by the president. Trump then added that the Saudi very strongly says that he didn’t do it. Point to be noted that Trump said, “Bob, they spent $400 billion over a fairly short period of time. And you know, they’re in the Middle East. You know, they’re big. Because of their religious monuments, you know, they have the real power. They have the oil, but they also have great monuments for religion. You know that, right? For that religion”. It is important that Trump vetoed a bill to stop American support for the Saudi-led coalition fighting a war in Yemen following Khashoggi’s murder.