Crown prince's brother reportedly worked to get Khashoggi back to Saudi Arabia


In either late 2017 or early 2018, murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi met with Prince Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi ambassador to the United States and younger brother of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, while at Saudi Arabia's embassy in Washington, several people with knowledge of the meeting told NBC News on Monday.
Khashoggi was at the embassy to take care of a routine matter, and after he was recognized by officials, they called the ambassador's office, and he was invited up to meet with him, two friends of Khashoggi's said. It was a friendly meeting, he told them, which lasted about 30 minutes. The embassy confirmed the meeting happened, but it's not clear what they discussed.
Saudi Arabia had been pushing for Khashoggi to return; the journalist was critical of some of the government's decisions, and had left to live in the United States. Khashoggi's friends said he had not only been contacted by Prince Khalid but also one of the crown prince's top aides, Saud al-Qahtani, about a high-ranking job in the royal court, but Khashoggi was wary of the overtures, afraid he was being tricked and would be punished upon his return to Saudi Arabia. Four people with knowledge of how Saudi intelligence operates told NBC News that for years, the plan has been to negotiate with dissidents in an attempt to get them back to the kingdom.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, with Saudi Arabia only admitting he was dead on Friday, after Turkish officials said for weeks he had been murdered within hours of his arrival at the consulate. Saudi Arabia claims he was killed in a fight, and Qahtani has been fired for his role in the "rogue operation." After Khashoggi was reported missing, Prince Khalid went back to Saudi Arabia, and has yet to return to the U.S.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Alchemised: how Harry Potter fanfic went mainstream
In The Spotlight Traditional publishers are signing up fan fiction authors to rewrite their ‘explosively popular’ romances for the mass market
-
Crossword: October 6, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
-
Codeword: October 6, 2025
The Week's daily codeword puzzle
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feud
Speed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protesters
Speed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’
Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoff
Speed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies
-
YouTube to pay Trump $22M over Jan. 6 expulsion
Speed Read The president accused the company of censorship following the suspension of accounts post-Capitol riot
-
Oregon sues to stop Trump military deployment
Speed Read The president wants to send the National Guard into Portland