President Donald Trump praised Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as "incredible in terms of human rights" during an Oval Office meeting Nov. 18, preemptively deflecting questions about the kingdom's extensive record of abuses as the crown prince pledged $1 trillion in US investments.

The comments came despite weeks of pressure from human rights advocates urging Trump to confront the crown prince over Saudi Arabia's record of grave abuses, an incomplete list of which is said to include record numbers of executions, torture of dissidents, systematic repression of women, and the killing of hundreds of Ethiopian migrants at the Yemen border.

Human rights groups have also documented prison sentences for social media posts (such as the case of Salma al-Shehab), enforced disappearances, and widespread abuse of migrant workers under the kafala sponsorship system. Several young men who were minors when arrested remain at risk of execution.

Human Rights Watch pointed out that Trump's meeting with bin Salman came just five months after Saudi authorities executed journalist Turki al-Jasser, who had been arrested for social media posts critical of the regime in 2018 and charged with "high treason." Executions in Saudi Arabia are carried out by beheading with a sword.

At a press gathering following their meeting, Trump described the crown prince as an "extremely respected man" and a "very good friend of mine," adding: "What he's done is incredible in terms of human rights and everything else."

When a reporter asked about US intelligence conclusions that the crown prince orchestrated the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Trump dismissed the question as coming from "fake news" and said the Saudi leader "knew nothing about it." The president described the late journalist, who had been critical of the crown prince's policies, as "extremely controversial," saying "a lot of people didn't like that gentleman."

The crown prince took a less defensive approach to the question, saying that Khashoggi's death was "painful" and "a huge mistake," and claiming Saudi Arabia has improved its safeguards to prevent similar incidents.

From JURIST, Nov. 18. Used with permission. Internal links added.