In a new exclusive disclosure to the Middle East A British source, a Saudi source with deep knowledge of his country's intelligence about a killing squad operating under the direction and supervision of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The site pointed out that the "Tiger Squad" as it is well known to the American intelligence services, and that it was formed more than a year ago and consists of fifty members of the best intelligence and military elements in the Kingdom, has recruited the group from different branches of the Saudi security services, Experience, and its members are loyal to the Crown Prince in Riyadh.
The source revealed the site exclusive details about the Tiger group and its composition and objectives and members, and although the site could not confirm the information disclosed, the source was verified independently.
The source said the task of the Tiger team is to assassinate Saudi dissidents secretly within the Kingdom and on any foreign land in a way that is hidden to the media, the international community and politicians.
"They (the Saudi leadership) believe that the arrest of the critics will increase the pressure on them, and that's why they began to kill them quietly."
The website says the Tiger's assassination methods are multiple. Sometimes it becomes dirty, as Khashoggi was tortured, killed and mutilated at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
South Tiger
The source said the group also plans to assassinate people who are not recognizable and appear to be accidents, such as a car accident or a house fire. They even injected fugitives with deadly viruses when visiting a hospital for a routine check.
| " Turkey intercepted 14 phone calls to a singer on October 2, the day Khashoggi was killed, seven of which were with the Crown Prince's Office " |
The source said the group was named after General Ahmed al-Asiri, deputy head of Saudi intelligence, who was sacked by Riyadh last week after international pressure on Saudi Arabia to take action on Khashoggi's death.
The source said that "Asiri is known among his colleagues as the tiger of the south, and since the war on the coalition on Yemen, the Saudi media also began to be called the beast, and he loved this title."
The source denied knowing who was ordering the Tiger, but said Assiri and Saud al-Qahtani were close associates of Mohammed bin Salman and part of the command structure.
The source said that the Crown Prince chose five of his most loyal and trustworthy personnel to work for the Tiger Brigade, all of whom were among the 15 men sent to kill Khashoggi, including Maher Abdul Aziz, Mohammed Saad Al Zahrani and Thaer Ghaleb Al Harbi.
Carrying a rank-and-shoot singer, was seen traveling with Mohammed bin Salman earlier this year in tours in Boston, Houston and the United Nations in New York.
He was described - as the source said - as "the backbone of the tiger band, was chosen by Ben Salman himself and depend on him and is close to him."
The source added that "the Crown Prince chose his close detachment in the band to keep in direct contact with them and supervise the assassinations."
The source said that Turkey intercepted 14 phone calls to a singer on 2 October on the day of Khashoggi's death, seven of which were with the Crown Prince's office.
The source did not say whether the singer's calls were related to the killing of Khashoggi, but said if the calls were leaked it would be "loud".
According to the source, a singer and three others injected Khashoggi with a lethal anesthetic before cutting his body on a table inside the consulate.
Silencing opponents
The website pointed out that the singer's alleged calls to the Ben Salman office were also reported by Turkish newspaper Yeni Shafak on Monday.
According to the newspaper, a singer spoke to the head of the Crown Prince's special office four times after the killing of Khashoggi.
One of the first secret operations carried out by the Tiger group within the Saudi border was the killing of Prince Mansour bin Muqrin, deputy governor of Asir province and the son of the former crown prince in November last year, the Middle East said.
According to the source, Meshal Saad al-Bustani, a member of the Tiger Brigade and one of the 15 Saudis suspected of killing Khashoggi, was behind Mansour's death.
The source pointed to another internal operation managed by the Tiger group is the killing of the President of the General Court in Mecca Judge Sheikh Suleiman Abdul Rahman Al-Thunayan in a hospital in Riyadh on 1 October.
"I think he was killed with deadly viruses injected into the body during a routine medical examination, and the band knew he had a date at the hospital and made his death look normal," the source said.
The source added that "Judge Al-Thunayan had sent a letter to Mohammed bin Salman, expressing his opposition to his economic vision for 2030."
"One of the methods used by the Tiger to silence dissidents or government opponents is to kill them with HIV or other deadly viruses," the source added.