Saudi King Salman fails to mention Khashoggi murder in anticipated speech

Saudi Arabia's king has failed to touch on the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a speech to the kingdom's Shura Council.

King Salman made the annual address on Monday with many of the kingdom's senior officials in attendance, Saudi-funded Al-Arabiya reported, including controversial Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The ageing monarch instead chose to hail his son Prince Mohammed for his "efforts to prepare the next generation of Saudis", who has been linked to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The king praised the judiciary for "carrying out their duty in the service of justice", without directly mentioning the killing of Khashoggi.

He said the kingdom backed efforts to end the conflict in neighbouring Yemen through a political solution.

He also criticised regional rival Iran for attempting to "create chaos and destroy countries in the region".

The speech comes amid mounting pressure on Riyadh over the Khashoggi's murder in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on 2 October.

The CIA has reportedly concluded that Prince Mohammed was behind the killing, contradicting the Saudi narrative that has exonerated the prince of involvement in the brutal murder.

US President Donald Trump has said he will make his final conclusions on the murder this week.

Khashoggi, who was critical of the crown prince, was killed after going to the consulate to retrieve documents necessary to marry his Turkish fiancee.

According to Turkish officials, an audio recording shows that Khashoggi was strangled to death and dismembered soon after entering the Saudi mission.

Saudi Arabia has offered shifting accounts of what happened, initially saying Khashoggi left the embassy after receiving his documents and later that he was killed when an argument degenerated into a fistfight.

In the latest version, the Saudi prosecutor said a 15-member team went to Istanbul to bring Khashoggi back to the kingdom but killed him instead in a rogue operation.