Saudi crown prince exonerated in Khashoggi murder – prosecutor

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor on Thursday exonerated Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, accusing two senior officials of giving the orders.

A spokesman for the public prosecutor's office denied Prince Mohammed had any knowledge of the killing inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate, in response to a journalist's question.

The spokesman said the deputy chief of Saudi intelligence, General Ahmed al-Assiri, had given an order to force Khashoggi home -- and "the head of the negotiating team" that flew to Istanbul had ordered his murder.