President Donald Trump, while continuing to defend his response to a CIA report that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman most likely ordered the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, said Thursday that the prince "hates" the situation even "more than I do."
He also insisted that the "CIA points it both ways" over who was behind the Washington Post columnist's death, reports The Hill.
"I hate the crime and I hate what is done and I hate the cover-up," Trump told reporters, after concluding a Thanksgiving Day teleconference with members of the military. "I will tell you this, the crown prince hates it more than I do."
The CIA last week briefed members of Congress on its assessment that the crown prince ordered the assassination, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Their conclusion relied mainly on circumstantial evidence and experts' conclusions that the prince tightly controls Saudi government actions.
But on Thursday, Trump told reporters that "maybe the world should be held accountable because the world is a vicious place."
Trump also insisted the report was not conclusive.
"As I said, 'Maybe he did, maybe he didn't,'" he said. "But I will say very strongly that it's a very important ally. And if we go by a certain standard we won't be able to have allies with almost any country."
He also accused the press of "false reporting" and commented that the "CIA doesn't say they did it."
"They do point out certain things, and pointing out those things, you can conclude that maybe he did or maybe he didn’t,” said Trump. "They didn’t conclude. They did not come to a conclusion. They have feelings certain ways. … Nobody’s concluded," he added. "I don’t know if anyone’s going to be able to conclude that the crown prince did.”
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.