Thread by @AkbarSAhmed

Leading HuffPost one year & one week after Khashoggi's killing: my story on the #SaudiSeven, powerful men who helped Saudi Arabia stay influential in the global community instead of being shunned for the brutal murder of a citizen who sought refuge abroad

huffpost.com/entry/saudi-se…

We know Trump covered for Saudi & said it didn't matter even if, as the CIA & UN believe, the country's crown prince knew of and was implicated in the assassination.

We've paid less attention to the many other useful friends doing damage control for the kingdom. Let's meet a few

1. Brad Klapper, lobbyist. Since Khashoggi's killing, he's been a fixture in the Saudi effort to sustain DC support--a key asset because he was until last year an AP journalist himself. He's someone elites have known, trusted and been friendly withfor years. It's hard for them...

...to grasp "this is somebody who’s working to push a Saudi agenda,” @BenFreemanDC told me, which leaves Klapper with the likely benefit of being treated differently from others working to spread the Saudi view. "Having folks like that on your payroll really opens a lot of doors"

2. John Flint, banker. At the time of Khashoggi's murder, he ran HSBC, the bank WSJ called "arguably the most important for the kingdom." He said he understood "the emotion" but couldn't see business being affected. That set the tone for global finance to keep the kingdom close.

3. Joel Rosenberg, evangelical author. Rosenberg has now led multiple delegations of influential (including Trump aides) to the kingdom since the killing. Those appearances are key to MBS's narrative that the real story is change in the kingdom--even as it remains intolerant to..

..non-Muslims within its borders and its own citizens if they minorities (eg Shia). "Although Saudi has pursued religious soft power among other Muslims, MBS knows that that doesn’t pay the bills," @AnnelleSheline noted; he knows projecting "Islamic reform" helps him in the West.

4. Mohammed Khalid Alyahya, spin doctor. A former DC pundit, he's now a face of what @cooglea described as Saudi Arabia's "primary regional spin artist." He's central to rallying Saudi nationalism & defiance to international criticism and muddying the waters by picking fights...

...online, including with journalists. The point is to utilize both talk of investigation, understanding foreign concerns, etc., and feelings of nationalism that are especially strong among MBS's core constituency, younger Saudis tired of being embarrassed about their country.

5. Horacio Rozanski, consultant. The head of Booz Allen Hamilton has overseen the influential firm's continued relationship with Saudi Arabia in the year since Khashoggi died. McKinsey has gotten a lot of attention but it's Booz Allen that's even better connected in DC--& close..

..to MBS policies like modernizing the Saudi military establishment. The firm has employed dozens of US veterans in the kingdom, the NYT revealed, and drawn congressional scrutiny over the relationship. It sees its work as "consistent with US foreign policy," a spokesman said.

6. Xi Jinping, China's leader. He hosted MBS >6 months after the Khashoggi killing, signaling that Saudi Arabia still has rich, mighty friends & that the US & others considering shunning it could find that resulted in a gain for a key competitor. The boondoggle helped Xi too...

...because he got the prince, who's set to be one of the most influential figures in the Muslim world, to endorse China's placing ~2 million Muslims in internment camps. The philosophical jump isn't hard if you think about it: neither leader cares much for basic human rights.

7. Mitch McConnell, senator. Congress was already itching to question ties with Saudi Arabia before Khashoggi's killing. Soon afterwards, Democrats took over the House--which meant one chamber could be relied on to pass tough legislation over Khashoggi, Yemen and more. Led by...

...McConnell, the Senate GOP has been a vital shield for the Saudis, @KateKizer told me, calling him & his top 2 allies a "trio of tyranny." We'll see with upcoming negotiations on must-pass defense legislation if they'll change course. But I wouldn't bet on it (nor would MBS).

@KateKizer Big thank you to @NickBaumann @gzornick @capeybara @elisefoley & many more on our team for helping make this happen and having my back. I hope you'll take a look.