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Fact check

Is it true: Jamal Khashoggi Assassination?

Confirmed95% confidence

Yes — this is confirmed.

The ODNI declassified assessment (released February 2021) states with confidence that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the operation to "capture or kill" Khashoggi. A 15-member Saudi team, including personnel from MBS's personal protective detail, flew to Istanbul, murdered Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate, and returned to Saudi Arabia on October 2, 2018. Turkish intelligence recorded audio of the operation; key recordings have been publicly described but not fully released. The UN Special Rapporteur Agnès Callamard's 2019 report reached the same conclusion as ODNI. Saudi Arabia held limited trials; five lower-level operatives were sentenced, but senior officials named in the ODNI assessment have faced no consequences.

The claim

The October 2, 2018 assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. The US Intelligence Community's February 2021 declassified assessment co

Key evidence

ODNI 2021 declassified assessment names MBS

Saudi trials: limited accountability

Read the full evidence file

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