Mnunchin Still Met With Saudi Crown Prince Amid Outcry Over Khashoggi Murder

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By Alyssa Fisher October 23, 2018

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin may have bailed on attending a financial summit while in Saudi Arabia this week, but he still met with the country’s crown prince on Monday amidst an uproar over the apparent murder of a dissident, CNN reported.

Mnuchin announced on Twitter on Thursday that he would not be attending the “Davos in the Desert” conference as the Trump administration waited for more details into the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. However, Mnuchin still decided to participate in a separate meeting on anti-terrorism finance, The Washington Post reported.

At the event were Saudi security services who may have been involved in Khashoggi’s death, according to the Post.

The Saudi foreign ministry tweeted a photo of Mnuchin and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, CNN reported. The caption says that the meeting “stresses the importance of the Saudi-US strategic partnership, where it holds an important role in the future in line with the Kingdom’s #Vision2030.”

At the meeting, Mnuchin and the crown prince plotted how to combat terrorism financing and impose sanctions on Iran, in addition to discussing the Khashoggi case, Treasury spokesman Tony Sayegh told CNN.

Turkish officials have said they believe Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and strong critic of Saudi government, was murdered and dismembered at the consulate in Istanbul.

Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at fisher@forward.com, or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher

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