President Biden
Joe Biden Biden ‘disappointed’ in Senate parliamentary ruling but ‘respects’ decision Taylor Swift celebrates passage of Donald Trump Jr. calls Bruce Springsteen’s dropped charges ‘liberal privilege’ MORE said Friday that he will hold Saudi Arabia accountable after the government released a report revealing that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the murder of US-based journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
In an interview with Univision, Biden spoke of a conversation he had with Saudi King Salman on Thursday, in which he emphasized that the US would force Riyadh to honor human rights amid persistent criticism of the murder of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist who lived in Virginia and was critical of the Saudi royal family.
‘I spoke to the king yesterday, not the prince. Made it clear to him that the rules are changing and we are going to announce significant changes today and Monday. We are going to hold them accountable for human rights violations and we are going to make sure that if they want to deal with us, they must deal with them in a way that the human rights violations are addressed. , ‘Said Biden.
“And we try to do that all over the world,” he continued. ‘But especially here, this report was there, the last government didn’t even want to release it. We immediately, when I came in, filed the report, read it, got it, and released it today. And it is outrageous what happened. “
The comments come as bipartisan lawmakers on Capitol Hill call for a realignment of Washington’s historically close relationship with Riyadh. Frustration with Saudi Arabia has grown, not only over the Khashoggi assassination, but also over the Saudi Arabia-backed offensive against Houthi rebels in Yemen, which observers say has exacerbated a humanitarian crisis in the country.
“I am hopeful that it is only a first step and that the government intends to take concrete steps to hold Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman personally responsible for his role in this heinous crime,” Sen. Bob Menendez
Robert (Bob) MenendezSenate confirms Thomas-Greenfield as UN Ambassador The Memo: Biden Bets Big on Immigration Biden Pushes Expanded Paths to Citizenship as Immigration Act Enters Congress MORE (DN.J.), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a statement, referring to the publication of the report.
In response to the report, the Biden government on Friday rolled out sanctions against people involved in the Khashoggi murder and imposed visa restrictions on 76 Saudis believed to be involved in threatening dissidents abroad.
However, the White House did not announce any specific punishment for Muhammad, the daily ruler of the kingdom.
Khashoggi was murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, where he tried to obtain documents for a marriage certificate. Turkish authorities have said they believe Khashoggi was strangled upon his arrival and later dismembered in an attempt to hide his body.