President Trump said "a lot of people didn't like" journalist Jamal Khashoggi during a Tuesday meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS).
Why it matters: The 2018 murder of Khashoggi was among the reasons for heightened tension between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia during the Biden administration, which released a report in 2021 that concluded MBS approved the order to "capture or kill" the Saudi journalist.
- Saudi officials rejected the report's findings, calling it a "negative, false and unacceptable assessment."
The latest: "You're mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial," Trump said in the Oval Office.
- "About the journalist, it's really painful to hear anyone losing his life for no real purpose or not in a legal way," MBS said. "And it's been painful for us in Saudi Arabia. We did all the right steps of investigation, et cetera, in Saudi Arabia. And we've improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that."
- The Washington Post, where Khashoggi worked, did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.
Flashback: Saudi Arabia was the first foreign trip of Trump's first term. He planned to return for the first trip of his second administration this year, but instead attended Pope Francis' funeral.
Friction point: Trump on Tuesday said the question, which was from an ABC News reporter, "embarrassed" his guest.
- "Whether you like him or didn't like him, things happen, but [the crown prince] knew nothing about it," Trump said.
- The president called the reporter a "terrible person."
Zoom out: Khashoggi became an outspoken critic of MBS in 2017 after the then-newly appointed crown prince began cracking down on dissent.
- The journalist fled Saudi Arabia in 2017 and went into self-imposed exile in Virginia. His Washington Post columns were frequently critical of the regime.
- He was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.
Zoom in: Khashoggi's widow, Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, told CNN on Monday that it was "very painful" to see Trump welcome MBS.
- "It would be better if Jamal was here and receiving the crown prince by himself and meet with him and share with him his vision and mission and all of his ideas," she said.
Go deeper: U.S. will sell Saudi Arabia advanced F-35 fighter jets, Trump says
Editor's note: This story has been updated with details throughout.
