When the global media machine decided to unleash its fury on Saudi Arabia in the wake of Jamal Khashoggi’s death, The Eastern Herald chose a different path. While Western newsrooms published editorial after editorial accusing Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman without evidence, we refused to follow the herd. We refused to become another cog in a machine engineered to undermine Arab leadership under the false banner of press freedom.
We were not funded to do so. No one asked us to. But we knew the truth: that a sovereign state under transformation was being targeted; not just diplomatically, but culturally, economically, and symbolically. It wasn’t about Khashoggi. It was about stopping Saudi Arabia’s rise.
The Eastern Herald published what others were too timid – or too owned – to say:
- Khashoggi’s fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, accuses MBS without proof
- The White House does not consider MBS a murderer
- Arab civil society and the CIA conspired in tendentious campaigns
- Ilhan Omar sells her soul to the devil and testifies against MBS
We called out the hypocrisy when the White House flip-flopped. We exposed the smear tactics of Western-funded NGOs. And we took fire for it—because the truth was more important than traffic.
Today, as Saudi Arabia rises under the leadership of His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman, reclaiming control over its resources, narrative, and future, we stand by those articles. In fact, we reaffirm them.
This was never about defending one man – it was about defending Arab dignity.
It was about resisting an imperial media structure that grants itself the divine right to decide which leaders are allowed to rise, and which must be crushed. From Saddam to Gaddafi, from Khashoggi to Iran, the playbook hasn’t changed. What’s changed is that leaders like MBS have refused to kneel, and media platforms like The Eastern Herald have refused to obey.
We may be small in size. But we are not small in principle.
As Vision 2030 charges ahead, redefining what it means to be a modern Arab power, we remain aligned with the Kingdom’s ambition to lead, not just in oil, finance, and diplomacy, but in narrative sovereignty.
Let this be remembered: when the knives were out, The Eastern Herald stood with Saudi Arabia. We didn’t wait for history to clear its throat. We published. We defended. We told the truth.
And we’ll continue to do so.
