https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-...dering-his-assassination-20200807-p55jem.html
Washington: A former top Saudi intelligence officer and close US intelligence ally has accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of targeting him for assassination and taking his children hostage because he has knowledge of damaging secrets about the prince's rise to power.
In a federal lawsuit filed in Washington on Thursday, Saad Aljabri said "there is virtually no one that Defendant bin Salman wants dead" more than him because of his relationship with the American government as "a longtime trusted partner of senior US intelligence officials."
Aljabri - now living in exile in Toronto - is "uniquely positioned to existentially threaten Defendant bin Salman's standing with the US Government," the lawsuit said.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.Credit:AP
In a detailed complaint running more than 100 pages, Aljabri alleges that the Saudi leader orchestrated a conspiracy to kill him in Canada that parallels one that resulted in the death and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi, the dissident Saudi columnist. The CIA has assessed that Mohammed likely ordered Khashoggi's killing himself.
Aljabri says the prince and his allies pressured him to return to Saudi Arabia, with Mohammed sending agents to the United States to locate Aljabri and having malware implanted on his phone.
When Aljabri was ultimately located, Mohammed sent a "hit squad" to kill him, the lawsuit asserts. The team was stopped by Canadian customs officials who, in a grisly echo of the Khashoggi case, were found carrying forensic tools that could have been used to dismember a corpse, Aljabri alleges.
Jamal Khashoggi was killed at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018.Credit:AP
Since March, Saudi authorities have arrested and held one of Aljabri's sons, Omar, 22, and a daughter, Sarah, 20, the suit alleges. Aljabri's brother has also been arrested, and other relatives detained and tortured inside and outside of Saudi Arabia, the lawsuit said, "all in an effort to bait [Aljabri] back to Saudi Arabia to be killed."
A spokesman for the Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.
Such explosive claims from a once-high-ranking Saudi official, whom the CIA credits with helping save American lives from terrorist attacks, could further strain Washington's battered relationship with Riyadh. After Khashoggi's death in 2018, Democratic and Republican lawmakers once counted as stalwart allies of the kingdom have turned away from the young crown prince and threatened to upend decades of economic and security cooperation between the two countries.
Mohammed has sought to rehabilitate his standing on the world stage. He has benefited from the unflagging support of President Donald Trump, who has refused to accept the CIA's assessment that Mohammed probably ordered Khashoggi's death. The crown prince has said Trump assured him that he had nothing to do with what the US president has called "an unacceptable and horrible crime."
Aljabri, represented by the Jenner & Block law firm, alleges in the lawsuit that Mohammed believes Aljabri "is responsible" for the CIA's conclusion and sees him as an impediment to further consolidating his power in Saudi Arabia and with the US intelligence community.
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https://www.businessinsider.com.au/trump-woodward-i-saved-his-ass-mbs-khashoggi-rage-2020-9
'I saved his a--': Trump boasted that he protected Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after Jamal Khashoggi's brutal murder, Woodward's new book says
“Yeah, but Iran is killing 36 people a day, so —” Trump began, before Woodward redirected the conversation and continued to press Trump about MBS’s role in ordering Khashoggi’s killing.
“I saved his arse,” Trump had said amid the US outcry following Khashoggi’s murder, the book says. “I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop.”
During his January 22 conversation with Woodward, the president said: “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,” Trump said of MBS. “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.”
“Do you believe that he did it?” Woodward asked.
“No, he says that he didn’t do it,” Trump replied.
“I know, but do you really believe —” Woodward said before Trump cut him off.
“He says very strongly that he didn’t do it,” Trump said. “Bob, they spent $US400 billion over a fairly short period of time.”
He added: “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 the great monuments for religion. You know that, right? For that religion.
“They wouldn’t last a week if we’re not there, and they know it,” he said.
Trump repeatedly used executive power to block or bypass congressional efforts to cut ties with Riyadh after Khashoggi’s murder.
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/trump-woodward-i-saved-his-ass-mbs-khashoggi-rage-2020-9
'I saved his a--': Trump boasted that he protected Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after Jamal Khashoggi's brutal murder, Woodward's new book says
- President Donald Trump bragged that he protected Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after the assassination and dismembering of the Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018.
- “I saved his arse,” Trump had said amid the US outcry over Khashoggi’s killing, according to Bob Woodward’s new book. “I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop.”
- The president told Woodward he didn’t believe that MBS ordered Khashoggi’s murder, though the US and other foreign intelligence services concluded that he did order the attack.
- After Khashoggi’s murder, Trump bypassed Congress to sell roughly $US8 billion in arms to the Saudis and the United Arab Emirates. He vetoed a trio of resolutions blocking the sale, as well as a resolution to end US support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
“Yeah, but Iran is killing 36 people a day, so —” Trump began, before Woodward redirected the conversation and continued to press Trump about MBS’s role in ordering Khashoggi’s killing.
“I saved his arse,” Trump had said amid the US outcry following Khashoggi’s murder, the book says. “I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop.”
During his January 22 conversation with Woodward, the president said: “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,” Trump said of MBS. “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.”
“Do you believe that he did it?” Woodward asked.
“No, he says that he didn’t do it,” Trump replied.
“I know, but do you really believe —” Woodward said before Trump cut him off.
“He says very strongly that he didn’t do it,” Trump said. “Bob, they spent $US400 billion over a fairly short period of time.”
He added: “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 the great monuments for religion. You know that, right? For that religion.
“They wouldn’t last a week if we’re not there, and they know it,” he said.
Trump repeatedly used executive power to block or bypass congressional efforts to cut ties with Riyadh after Khashoggi’s murder.
MAGA:
The United States welcomes the release today of US citizens Sandra Loli and Mikael Gidada from Houthi custody in Yemen. We send our condolences to the family of Bilal Fateen whose remains will be repatriated as well.
We extend our sincerest thanks to Sultan Haitham bin Tariq of Oman and King Salman of Saudi Arabia for their efforts to secure the release of our citizens.
President Trump continues to prioritize securing the release and repatriation of Americans held hostage abroad. We will not rest until those held are home with their loved ones.
President Trump has brought home over 50 hostages and detainees from 22 countries since taking office.
The United States welcomes the release today of US citizens Sandra Loli and Mikael Gidada from Houthi custody in Yemen. We send our condolences to the family of Bilal Fateen whose remains will be repatriated as well.
We extend our sincerest thanks to Sultan Haitham bin Tariq of Oman and King Salman of Saudi Arabia for their efforts to secure the release of our citizens.
President Trump continues to prioritize securing the release and repatriation of Americans held hostage abroad. We will not rest until those held are home with their loved ones.
President Trump has brought home over 50 hostages and detainees from 22 countries since taking office.