Democrats vow to probe intelligence assessment of Khashoggi killing after Trump claims CIA ‘did not conclude’ Saudi prince behind murder

President said CIA view was not definitive

Senior Democrats have vowed to investigate the US intelligence community’s assessment of who was behind the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, after Donald Trump insisted – contrary to reports – the CIA had not concluded Saudi Arabia’s crown prince was responsible.

Congressman Adam Schiff, who in recent days has become a target for what many consider the president’s childish habit of name-calling, said it was essential to discover who ordered the 2 October murder of the Saudi writer.

“Certainly we will be delving further into the murder of Khashoggi, and I want to make sure that the committee is fully debriefed on it,” Mr Schiff, who is set to become chair of the House of Representatives’ intelligence committee, told The Washington Post.

“We will certainly want to examine what the intelligence community knows about the murder,” Mr Schiff added.

Saudi Arabia has denied that Crown Prince Mohammed had anything to do with the killing. The Saudi public prosecutor has blamed a “rogue” kidnap operation for the killing of Mr Khashoggi.

Last week, it was reported that the CIA had concluded with “high confidence” that due to Crown Prince Mohammed’s position as de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia the killing would have required his endorsement.

Mr Schiff, who some have touted as a possible future speaker for the House of Representatives, made the comments after Mr Trump again insisted the CIA had not concluded Mohammed bin Salman had ordered the killing of Mr Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

“They did not come to a conclusion. They have feelings, certain ways, but I have the report,” the president told reporters during a Thanksgiving Day telephone press conference. “They have not concluded. Nobody’s concluded. I don’t know if anyone could conclude that the crown prince did it.”

Asked who should be held accountable for the killing if not Saudi Arabia, the president replied: “Maybe the world should be held accountable because the world is a vicious place. The world is a very, very vicious place. You look at what’s happening in China, you look at what’s happening in so many different countries, I could name many countries. You look at what’s happening in terrorism all over the world.”

Mr Trump has been widely criticised for giving what many consider a pass to the Saudi authorities in order to retain a long-standing strategic and economic relationship with the nation. Mr Trump has certainly not sought to play down what he says is his main motivation, saying he wants to ensure access to weapons sales and cheap oil.

The 59-year-old journalist went missing after entering a consulate in Turkey to prepare for a trip to Saudi Arabia to get married. Turkish investigators believe the journalist was dismembered and his body parts removed by a 15-strong hit squad.

The Washington Post said CIA officials were confident in their assessment of what was behind the killing, even if they were unable to provide Mr Trump what he has termed a smoking gun. They based their assessment on multiple sources of information, the newspaper said.

Mr Schiff said “congressional scrutiny” of the issue would seek to flesh out what the intelligence community had concluded, and how firm the basis was for its conclusion.

“We’ll look at what the intelligence community assessments are at any given time,” he said. “Then it will be quite clear whether the president is relying on the intelligence community and our best source of information or whether the president is representing something very different.”

He added: “There are a whole set of potential financial conflicts of interest and emoluments problems that congress will need to get to the bottom of. If foreign investment in the Trump businesses is guiding US policy in a way that’s antithetical to the country’s interests, we need to find out.”

The White House has yet to comment on Mr Schiff’s remarks. Reuters said that in 2015, Mr Trump told a rally he earned “hundreds of millions” of dollars from Saudi purchases. However, speaking to reporters before he left for Florida, he claimed that self-interest had no place in his decision.

“We are staying with Saudi Arabia, and by the way, I have no business with Saudi Arabia. I couldn’t care less,” he said. “This is about America first.”

Turkey’s top diplomat has said the Saudi crown prince, currently in the UAE as part of a tour of Arab states, has requested a meeting with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the upcoming Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires.

Mevlut Cavusoglu told Turkey’s CNN-Turk television that Turkey saw “no obstacle” for a meeting between the two, but added that Mr Erdogan would make the final decision on whether to meet the prince at the two-day G20 summit that starts on 30 November. It would be the first meeting between the two since the killing of Mr Khashoggi.