US President Donald Trump has said he believes the death of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi was the result of a "plot gone awry," and that he opposes ending the USD 110 billion mega arms deal with Riyadh over the issue.
Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post, was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
The Saudi government initially said he left the consulate through the back door.
Following a global outrage, the Saudi government on Friday in a statement acknowledged that Khashoggi was killed in a fistfight inside the consulate and noted that an interrogation went wrong.
Turkish officials have said they have evidence Khashoggi was tortured, dismembered and murdered inside the consulate.
US President Donald Trump has said he was "not satisfied" with the response of Riyadh over Khashoggi's death.
The president also said a group of US officials are in Saudi Arabia and another group of investigators in Turkey are trying to gather information on this issue.
"I am not satisfied with what I've heard," Trump told reporters at the White House before leaving for an election rally in Texas Monday.
"We will know very soon. We have tremendously talented people very well. They're coming back tonight or tomorrow and I will know very soon," he said responding to a question.
He also said that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has told him that neither he nor the king were involved in this.
"He (Crown Prince) says he is not involved nor is the king," Trump told USA Today, a popular American daily, in an interview.
If their involvement was proven, "I would be very upset about it. We'll have to see", the president said.
Trump, who has said he wants to get to the bottom of the case, told the daily that he still believed it was "a plot gone awry".
He reiterated that he would oppose efforts to cease arms sales to the kingdom.
Over the past few days, Trump has spoken with the Saudi prince and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.
More details of the incident would be known in a day or two, the US president said.
Responding to questions, Trump said he was against making any move on the USD 110 billion mega arms deal with the Saudis.
"I don't want to lose all of that investment that's being made in our country. I don't want to lose a million jobs, I don't want to lose USD110 billion in terms of investment, but it's really USD450 billion So that's very important," he said.
Calling for the release of information regarding the US intelligence community's advance knowledge of Saudi Arabia's plot to capture Khashoggi, over 50 US lawmakers, led by Indian-American Ro Khanna and Mark Pocan, have written to Daniel Coats, Director of National Intelligence,
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
You’ve reached your limit of {{free_limit}} free articles this month.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
Already subscribed? Log in
Subscribe to read the full story →
Smart Quarterly
₹900
3 Months
₹300/Month
Smart Essential
₹2,700
1 Year
₹225/Month
Super Saver
₹3,900
2 Years
₹162/Month
Renews automatically, cancel anytime
Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans
Exclusive premium stories online
Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors


Complimentary Access to The New York Times
News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic
Business Standard Epaper
Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share


Curated Newsletters
Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox
Market Analysis & Investment Insights
In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor


Archives
Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997
Ad-free Reading
Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements


Seamless Access Across All Devices
Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app
