Saudi officials indicated on Saturday they were keen to move on from the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, one day after US President Joe Biden raised it in his talks with crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS).
Tensions between the two men had been high ahead of their first meeting, especially after Biden’s administration last year released an assessment by the intelligence community that MBS “approved” the operation that led to Khashoggi’s killing and dismemberment in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate.
In remarks on Friday night, Biden called Khashoggi’s death “outrageous” and said he had warned MBS against further attacks on dissidents, without specifying what actions he might take.
The Al-Arabiya channel quoted a Saudi official saying the pair “addressed the issue of Jamal Khashoggi quickly” and that MBS “confirmed that what happened is regrettable and we have taken all legal measures to prevent” a recurrence.
