Prince al-Waleed bin Talal defends MBS amid Khashoggi outrage

The wealthy and powerful prince appeared on Fox News "Sunday Morning Futures" to assure the American audience that the monarchy’s de facto ruler “will be 100 percent vindicated and exonerated," after the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

"Please let’s give some time for the investigation to finish," said the member of the Saudi royal family one day after his brother, Prince Khalid bin Talal, was freed from jail in Saudi Arabia.

He further urged Riyadh to be more transparent in the so-called investigation into Khashoggi’s torture, death, and dismemberment.

"I ask Saudi Arabia now publicly, through your program, to have the investigation made public as soon as possible so whereby I believe the Saudi Crown Prince will be 100 percent vindicated and exonerated," he added.

US lawmakers and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan maintain that the crown prince and other top Saudi leaders should be held accountable for Khashoggi's assassination,

Saudi Arabia has acknowledged the murder, yet left many questions unanswered.

Turkish intelligence intercepts reportedly show that Khashoggi, who was last seen entering the Saudi mission in Istanbul on October 2, was murdered on a direct order from Prince Mohammad bin Salman.

Khashoggi had been there to obtain a document certifying he divorced his ex-wife.

KD