RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Sunday named a princess as its first woman ambassador to the United States, a key appointment as the fallout over journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder tests relations between the allies.
Princess Rima bint Bandar replaced Prince Khalid bin Salman, the younger brother of the powerful crown prince who was appointed vice defence minister in a flurry of late-night royal decrees announced on state media.
The reshuffle comes as Saudi Arabia seeks to quell an international outcry over Khashoggi’s murder last October in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, which strained relations with its key ally Washington.
After initially denying they knew anything of Khashoggi’s disappearance, the kingdom finally acknowledged that Saudi agents killed him inside the consulate, but described it as a rogue operation.
Princess Rima faces hostile US lawmakers who have threatened tough action against Saudi Arabia over the brutal killing amid claims that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman -- the kingdom’s de-facto ruler -- was personally responsible.
The Saudi government has denied he had anything to do with the murder of Khashoggi, a royal insider-turned-critic who was a columnist with the Washington Post. "The appointment of a new envoy signifies an attempt by Riyadh to try and re-set relations with Washington and draw a line under the Khashoggi affair, however unlikely that may be in practice, at least with Congress," Kristian Ulrichsen, a fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute in the United States said.
Mobsters have moved aggressively into the low-risk, low-key world of white-collar crime
Deby has promised to bolster security, strengthen the rule of law and increase electricity production
Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said the attack took place near the village of Berezovka
Under Iraqi law, terrorism and murder offences are punishable by death
The Turkish defence ministry said the PKK militants had been “neutralised” in the Hakurk region
According to Italian broadcaster RAI, the workers suffered from toxic gas poisoning