Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman described slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi as a dangerous Islamist days after his disappearance, The Washington Post reported.
The sharp criticism came in a phone call with President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and national security adviser John Bolton — before the kingdom publicly acknowledged Khashoggi’s death, the Post reported, citing unnamed sources.
In the call, Salman urged Kushner and Bolton to preserve the U.S.-Saudi alliance, saying Khashoggi was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, a group long opposed by Bolton and other senior Trump officials.
The private criticism is in contrast with the Saudi government’s later public statements that called Khashoggi’s death a “terrible mistake” and “terrible tragedy.”
In a statement released to the Post, Khashoggi’s family called the criticism “ridiculous.”
“Jamal Khashoggi was not a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. He denied such claims repeatedly over the past several years,” the family said, according to the Post. “Jamal Khashoggi was not a dangerous person in any way possible. To claim otherwise would be ridiculous.”