US Legislator: There is no reason not to penalize Muhammad bin Salman. House Speaker Elhan Omar said that if the United States “really supports freedom of expression, democracy, and human rights,” there is no reason not to boycott Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin, Salman.
“I think every minute that Bin Salman escapes punishment is a threat to American interest in human rights and to Saudi citizens,” Elhan Omar told CNN America.
“He is a person whose intelligence agency has concluded that he confirmed the killing of a US resident and a Saudi journalist (Jamal Khashoggi),” she said.
The US Legislator added: “Like Khashoggi being killed, this is what we have already decided to do to punish others, and by any measure of our law and order we will not only punish those who committed the murder, but we will punish those who agreed. And then we are going to do what we have to do. “We can keep these values and principles intact.”
President Joe Biden, meanwhile, looks to be trying to demonstrate to the American people and the rest of the world that his term in office is going to be different to that of his predecessor. It could also be seen as one way of settling old scores with Trump.
However, in allowing the report to be released, Biden has not overlooked the nature of US-Saudi relations politically, economically and militarily. He has adopted a carrot-and-stick approach and decided not to sanction the prince for his alleged role in Khashoggi’s murder. Instead, he has punished 76 of Bin Salman’s advisers, aides and security officials, whose names are listed in the report, according to the Khashoggi Ban Law, which will include anyone who is proven to have violated the rights of journalists.
When Bin Salman was interviewed on the CBS 60 Minutes programme he was asked about accusations that he was involved in the killing at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. His answer was confident and defiant: “There isn’t an official statement announced by the American government in this regard.” He clearly did not think that the day would come when this report would see the light of day.
Nevertheless, in consideration of US interests in Saudi Arabia, the report was redacted. Serious evidence was removed, including the audio transcripts and video recordings that have been available to the Americans since 2018.
