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Biden calls Saudi king as US readies report on Khashoggi killing

Reuters reports the US intelligence assessment concluded "the crown prince approved and likely ordered the murder of Khashoggi.”
Friends of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi hold posters bearing his picture as they attend an event marking the second-year anniversary of his assassination in front of Saudi Arabia Istanbul Consulate, on October 2, 2020. - Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, was killed and dismembered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2, 2018, in an operation that reportedly involved 15 agents sent from Riyadh. His remains have not been found. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via

President Joe Biden has spoken with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ahead of the Biden administration’s expected release of a long-awaited report implicating Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

Biden “affirmed the importance the United States places on universal human rights and the rule of law," according to the White House readout of the call, adding that the two leaders discussed the war in Yemen and the US commitment to Saudi Arabia's defense. The White House didn't say whether Biden has raised the Khashoggi report, as expected, with his Saudi counterpart. 

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