The U.S. State Department says it has urged Saudi Arabia to carry out any prosecution of officials detained in a sweeping crackdown on corruption in a “fair and transparent” manner.
Nauert said the United States had received assurances from the Saudi government that it would do so, but another U.S. official later told reporters that she had misspoken and that they had no such assurances that they could discuss in public.
Authorities detained dozens of top Saudis including billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal in a move widely seen as an attempt by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to neuter any opposition to his lightening ascent to the pinnacle of power.
U.S. President Donald Trump endorsed the crackdown, saying some of those arrested have been “milking” Saudi Arabia for years, but some Western officials expressed unease about the possible reaction in Riyadh’s opaque tribal and royal politics
