Saud Al-qahtani

A Saudi royal advisor fired over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi continues to wield influence in Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's inner circle, according to Western, Arab and Saudi sources with links to the royal court.

Authorities here will not say what became of Saud al-Qahtani, a powerful royal adviser whom Saudi prosecutors allege played a major role in the events that led to Jamal Khashoggi's killing in Istanbul three months ago.

Jamal Khashoggi had been in the United States for only a few months when the forces he had fled in Saudi Arabia made clear that he would never fully escape.

He ran social media for Saudi Arabia's crown prince. He masterminded the arrest of hundreds of his country's elite. He detained a Lebanese prime minister. And, according to two intelligence sources, he ran journalist Jamal Khashoggi's brutal killing at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul by giving orders over Skype.

A senior Saudi official on Friday appeared to confirm local media reports that the kingdom is considering digging a canal to separate the Qatari peninsula from the mainland and turn it into an island, amid a year-long dispute between the neighbours.

Saud Khariri scored in the first-half and Yasser Al-Qahtani added another from a penalty in the second-half as Saudi Arabia defeated South Korea 2-0.

A Saudi royal advisor fired over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi continues to wield influence in Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's inner circle, according to Western, Arab and Saudi sources with links to the royal court.

Authorities here will not say what became of Saud al-Qahtani, a powerful royal adviser whom Saudi prosecutors allege played a major role in the events that led to Jamal Khashoggi's killing in Istanbul three months ago.

Jamal Khashoggi had been in the United States for only a few months when the forces he had fled in Saudi Arabia made clear that he would never fully escape.

He ran social media for Saudi Arabia's crown prince. He masterminded the arrest of hundreds of his country's elite. He detained a Lebanese prime minister. And, according to two intelligence sources, he ran journalist Jamal Khashoggi's brutal killing at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul by giving orders over Skype.

A senior Saudi official on Friday appeared to confirm local media reports that the kingdom is considering digging a canal to separate the Qatari peninsula from the mainland and turn it into an island, amid a year-long dispute between the neighbours.

Saud Khariri scored in the first-half and Yasser Al-Qahtani added another from a penalty in the second-half as Saudi Arabia defeated South Korea 2-0.