Biden won't commit to mentioning slain Khashoggi

President Joe Biden declined to commit to mentioning the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a US-based writer, when he meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the kingdom.I always bring up human rights, Biden said during a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Thursday.

President Joe Biden declined to commit to mentioning the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a US-based writer, when he meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the kingdom.

“I always bring up human rights,” Biden said during a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Thursday. “But my position on Khashoggi has been so clear. If anyone doesn't understand it, in Saudi Arabia or anywhere else, then they haven't been around for a while.” Biden said the purpose of his trip to Saudi Arabia is “broader” and designed to “reassert” U.S. influence in the Middle East. He's scheduled to attend a summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes several Arab nations.

“I want to make clear that we can continue to lead in the region and not create a vacuum, a vacuum that is filled by China and or Russia, against the interests of both Israel and the United States and many other countries,” Biden said.

Khashoggi was a critic of the Saudi regime who wrote for the Washington Post. He was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

His widow recently told Spectrum News that she received a commitment from U.S. officials that Biden would mention him to the crown prince when they meet on Friday.