Jamal Khashoggi was barred from writing in Saudi Arabia after he criticized Trump, then left his native country

John Haltiwanger

Oct 18, 2018, 20:09 IST

Jamal Khashoggi was barred from writing in Saudi Arabia after he criticized Trump, then left his native country

Jamal Khashoggi was barred from writing and making public appearances by the Saudi royal family after he criticized President Donald Trump in late 2016.
Khashoggi went into self-imposed exile not long after the ban so he could continue reporting.
Khashoggi became a US resident and wrote for The Washington Post, continuing to criticize the kingdom's policies from afar.
Khashoggi went missing after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul earlier this month and is feared dead.
Trump has defended the Saudi royal family as it faces allegations of orchestrating Khashoggi's death.

Since Jamal Khashoggi disappeared after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul earlier this month, he has been widely characterized as a dissident.

Khashoggi considered himself a patriot, rejecting the term dissident, but he was often critical of the Saudi government in his reporting. But Saudi Arabia's government actually barred him from appearing in media there after he criticized President Donald Trump in late 2016, according to the US State Department.

Khashoggi had criticized Trump's stance and rhetoric on the Middle East in an appearance at a Washington, DC, think thank.

"The expectation that 'Trump as president' will be starkly different from 'Trump as candidate' is a false hope at best," Khashoggi said at the time.

Khashoggi left his native country roughly six months after the ban in June 2017, which also prohibited him from making TV appearances and attending conferences. He became a US resident - splitting time between Virginia, Istanbul, and London - and wrote columns for The Washington Post.

From a 2017 State Department report on Saudi Arabia human rights:

"Well-known Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said he moved to the United States in 'self-exile' and 'could face arrest upon returning home' due to his writing. He claimed his column in Saudi newspaper al-Hayat had been cancelled under political pressure. In 2016 authorities purportedly banned him from writing, appearing on television, and attending conferences as the result of remarks he made that were interpreted as criticizing the president of the United States, according to multiple media sources. Earlier, in July, authorities reportedly lifted the writing ban against him."

In a conversation with Columbia Journalism Review in March 2018, Khashoggi reflected on the ban.

"I'm a believer in free journalism, despite all the limitations we had. I always pushed the envelope, I always wanted to have more space," he said.

Khashoggi added: "I was so insulted when the royal court called me and told me that I am not allowed to write. ... In America, you take freedom for granted."

The Saudi journalist's disappearance and allegations he was killed under orders from the highest levels of the Saudi government - perhaps even from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman - have threatened to upend the historic US-Saudi partnership.

Bipartisan outrage in Congress has erupted over Khashoggi's disappearance and the gruesome details that have emerged about his fate.

But President Donald Trump has largely stood by the Saudis and repeatedly touted denials of any involvement in Khashoggi's disappearance from the Saudi leadership.

Trump's ongoing support of the Saudis throughout this crisis has led many critics to question whether his business ties in the country are influencing his foreign policy.