Saudis Call Khashoggi Murder a 'Mistake,' US Calls it 'Diplomacy'
Funny how a 'mistake' involves a bone saw, dismemberment, and a CIA report concluding Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) approved the operation. ( U.S. Intelligence Community Assessment, 2021 ). This isn't an 'oopsie' like spilling coffee; it's state-sanctioned barbarity. The US, meanwhile, rolls out the red carpet, because apparently, human rights are negotiable when oil and regional security
deals are on the table. (Remember when Biden promised to make Saudi Arabia a 'pariah' during his campaign? CNN, 2019 It seems that promise was also a 'mistake'.) One wonders which 'mistakes' are permitted by Washington. Is it the 'mistake' of drone striking civilians in Yemen without consequence ( ACLED, ongoing ), or perhaps the 'mistake' of a brutal blockade that starves millions? The double
standard is staggering: one sets a new precedent for performative apologies over murder, the other provides a blueprint for ignoring it entirely, as long as the check clears.