Top White House official involved in Saudi sanctions resigns

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November 18, 2018 12:48 AM

WASHINGTON — A top White House official responsible for U.S. policy toward Saudi Arabia resigned Friday evening, a move that may suggest fractures inside the Trump administration over the response to the brutal killing of dissident Jamal Khashoggi.

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The official, Kirsten Fontenrose, had pushed for tough measures against the Saudi government, and had been in Riyadh to discuss a raft of sanctions the U.S. government imposed in recent days against those identified as responsible for the killing, according to two people familiar with the conversations.

Specifically, she advocated that Saud al-Qahtani, a top adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, be added to the list, and he ultimately was.

The exact circumstances of her departure are murky, and it is unclear whether her advocacy for a hawkish response to the killing angered some in the White House. When she returned to Washington, according to the two people, she had a dispute with her bosses at the National Security Council, where she had served as the director for the Persian Gulf region.

A representative for the council declined to comment. Fontenrose did not reply to messages seeking comment.

On Saturday morning, President Donald Trump demurred about whether he would publicly hold the crown prince responsible for the death of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist. He said he had not yet been shown a CIA assessment that Crown Prince Mohammed had ordered the assassination.

“As of this moment, we were told that he did not play a role,” Trump said of the crown prince as he spoke to reporters outside the White House before heading to California to view wildfire damage. “We’re going to have to find out what they say.”

“We haven’t been briefed yet,” the president continued. “The CIA will be speaking to me today.”

The CIA has concluded that the crown prince ordered Khashoggi’s assassination, an assessment that was reported by multiple news outlets Friday evening. Hours after Trump spoke, a State Department spokeswoman called the news reports about the CIA’s assessment “inaccurate,” without giving any specifics.

“There remain numerous unanswered questions with respect to the murder of Mr. Khashoggi. The State Department will continue to seek all relevant facts,” said the spokeswoman, Heather Nauert. “In the meantime, we will continue to consult Congress, and work with other nations to hold accountable those involved in the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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