Published 20:59 IST, January 23rd 2020
'Phones, not people right?': Saudi hacking Bezos’ phone brings out netizens' dark humour
Social media was baffled after reports of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman hacking Amazon CEO and The Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos’ phone surfaced.
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Social media was baffled after reports of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman hacking Amazon CEO and The Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos’ phone surfaced. The media reports got the backing from the United Nations experts suggesting the possible involvement of the Crown Prince in surveillance of Bezos. The experts indicated that it was an effort to influence, if not silence, The Washington Post's reporting on Saudi Arabia.
Netizens React
Netizens latched onto the recent reports of phone hacking and recalled another incident where Saudi officials hacked The Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi to death.
Saudi officials close to MBS also tell WSJ that they were aware of a plan to hack Khashoggi into pieces, but not of any attempt to kill him.
— Art Radley (@g00dneighbour) January 22, 2020
At least they weren’t hacking people to bits this time
— George Brenner (@vanreuter) January 22, 2020
Bezos: I'm smart, rich, and important, so MBS wants to talk to me.
— Cate! (@CroweCate) January 22, 2020
MBS: Let's murder one of this employees and then throw a hand grenade into his personal life -- it'll cost him billions.
Given the very cozy relationship between Trump & Kushner clans, MBS, and the National Enquirer and Trump, Kushner, and MBS's mutual dislike of Bezos, I wonder how much Trump and Kushner knew about Saudi's hacking and extortion efforts against Bezos?https://t.co/YExHOlOsI2
— Todd Heberlein (@toddheberlein) January 22, 2020
Inner circle exonerated in Khashoggi killing
In December, Saudi Arabia court convicted eight people in the killing of The Washington Post columnist but exonerated inner circle of MBS. Agnes Callamard, UN Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Executions, and David Kaye, UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, said that the circumstances and timing of the hacking and surveillance of Bezos also strengthen support for further investigation by the US and other relevant authorities of the allegations that the Crown Prince ordered, incited, or, at a minimum, was aware of planning for but failed to stop the mission that fatally targeted Mr Khashoggi in Istanbul.
20:58 IST, January 23rd 2020