The kingdom’s de facto leader, known as MBS, rebuked Biden on Friday over the brutal abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison camp in 2004 in response to the president’s reference to Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist who was murdered in 2018, a Saudi official said on Saturday. “His Royal Highness reported to the President that such mistakes happen in other countries,” said Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir. “And we saw such a mistake being made by the United States at Abu Ghraib.” Dozens of Iraqi prisoners were tortured and abused by members of the US military at the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad under the Bush administration during the Iraq war. Gruesome photos of naked and hooded Iraqis, some forced into sexual positions, caused an international outcry when they surfaced in 2004. MBS has come under fire from human rights advocates since Khashoggi, a staunch critic of the prince’s regime, was killed and dismembered in Istanbul in 2018. US intelligence later found that the crown prince had personally approved Khashoggi’s killing – with resulting in Biden vowing that, as President, he would make Saudi Arabia’s leaders “the pariahs that they are.” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman raised Abu Ghraib in response to Biden discussing the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Photo by the Royal Court of Saudi Arabia/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images OMBS told Biden it regretted Khashoggi’s death but did not take responsibility for it. PA Images via Getty Images The comment freezes the relationship between the US and the Middle East’s biggest oil producer – a state that Biden sought to thaw with his visit. But the president has faced intense criticism for his willingness to mend fences. In their meeting, MBS told Biden he was sorry for Khashoggi’s death, al-Jubeir said — but did not take personal responsibility for it. The one-on-one meeting took place shortly after Biden arrived in Saudi Arabia during his Middle East trip. Photo by Royal Court of Saudi Arabia / Handout / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images “The crown prince replied that this was a painful episode for Saudi Arabia and that it was a terrible mistake,” al-Jubeir said.
