Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, the widow of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, has shared how “upset” she was by President Donald Trump dismissing her husband’s brutal death by casually stating that “things happen.”
The president was asked about Khashoggi’s 2018 murder during an Oval Office meeting on Tuesday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“You’re mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial,” Trump said about the slain journalist. “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about. Whether you liked him or didn’t like him, things happen.”
The president then defended Prince bin Salman by insisting he was not involved in the journalist’s death—a statement that directly contradicts U.S. intelligence, which found the prince likely ordered the murder.
“He knew nothing about it, and we can leave it at that. You don’t have to embarrass our guest by asking a question like that,” Trump replied, scolding ABC News reporter Mary Bruce.
Hanan Elatr Khashoggi appeared on CNN’s The Lead With Jake Tapper on Tuesday to discuss Trump’s comments and defense of the man the CIA said was directly involved in his murder.
“I was disappointed for two reasons,” Khashoggi said, firstly pointing out that Trump had stopped a journalist from doing her job. “This reminds me of some of the countries in the Middle East, which we don’t like to see this practice here in the U.S.,” she said.
“And second, to describe Jamal in such a way is not true. It is not related to Jamal,” she said.
“And the kind of justifying the crime by presenting Jamal this way and saying he’s controversial and some people do not like him, which has happened with every human being, does not mean [it’s fine] to kidnap him, torture him and to take his life away. And Jamal was not this person… being described today. It was upsetting for me.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.
Khashoggi, a U.S.-based columnist for The Washington Post who was critical of the crown prince and his policies, was reportedly kidnapped and killed by a team of Saudi agents in Istanbul in October 2018. He was 59.
Investigations found that Khashoggi was injected with a drug that led to his death, and that his body—which has never been located—was then dismembered with a bone saw.
The journalist’s widow was asked by Tapper if she had a message for Trump.
“I will tell him: Mr. President, I look at you as a peace man, and I really wish to meet you. For I can introduce Jamal in the right way and the real way you are not aware of.”
She said her husband was “a kind man.”
Tapper praised Khashoggi’s “grace” toward the president after his comments on her husband’s murder and mentioned she had previously written to both Donald and Melania Trump to ask for their help finding out who was responsible for her husband’s murder, and to help recover his body.
She continued her graceful messaging, stating she felt the Trumps had not seen her letter.
“But today, by appearing in media, maybe it will alert them and it will open the door for me. I really wish to share with them the real Jamal… And also what happened after this horrible crime [and] how that is impacting me… And even if they did not respond yet, I’m still persisting to seek help and to continue seeking justice for myself and Jamal.”
A composed Khashoggi described life without her husband.
“It‘s seven years of hell,” she said. “Basically, I’m a second victim. They killed Jamal and they killed me in the same day they killed him. I don‘t have any normal life. I live isolated with less income.”
When asked in the Oval Office on Tuesday about Khashoggi’s murder, the crown prince said “It’s really painful to hear that anyone is losing his life for no real purpose.”
“We did all the right steps in terms of investigation, etc. in Saudi Arabia and we’ve improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that,” he said. “It’s painful and it’s a huge mistake, and we are doing our best so that it will never happen again.”
The CIA’s 2021 assessment concluded that the prince approved the journalist’s murder, something he has long denied.
“We base this assessment on the Crown Prince’s control of decision-making in the Kingdom, the direct involvement of a key adviser and members of Muhammad bin Salman’s protective detail in the operation, and the Crown Prince’s support for using violent measures to silence dissidents abroad, including Khashoggi,” the CIA report said.
The president gave the prince a military flyover as a welcome, plus a personal tour of the White House. He then hosted a black tie dinner in Prince bin Salman’s honor on Tuesday night, with Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos among those in attendance.
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