Will the Khashoggi murder bring the Yemen war to an end?

If only one appalling criminal act could cancel out another appalling criminal act. There is much speculation that the Saudi regime murder of Jamal Khashoggi will somehow shame Saudi Arabia into ending the bombing of Houthi rebels - and civilians - in Yemen and agree to a ceasefire and an eventual peace settlement for this devastated country. I fear the Saudi government's refusal to take the blame for the strangling, dismemberment and disposal of Khashoggi, the Saudi dissident journalist, makes it less likely that Riyadh will suddenly agree to a ceasefire in Yemen. Or to put it another way, Riyadh will not want to link one with the other because it would mean losing face. Humiliation is not something the Saudi regime would wish to countenance. The Saudi chief prosecutor was in Turkey the other day to see his Turkish counterpart but spent the whole time apparently trying to find out what the Turks knew about the Khashoggi case rather than offering any assistance or insight into Riyadh's assessment of the killing. So there is no sign that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, has any intention of acknowledging partial or direct or any responsibility for the premeditated assassination. As a consequence he is hardly going to say: "OK, if you let us off for the Khashoggi murder, we'll call a halt to the bombing of innocent civilians in Yemen." That's just not going to happen. However, there could still be a link. MBS, as everyone seems to like calling the Crown Prince, may, MAY be upset at the international outcry over Khashoggi's brutal murder and may have been told by his ailing father King Salman, that the reputation of the kingdom is at stake. Therefore, a bit of magnanimity over Yemen might take some of the boiling anger against Saudi Arabia away from the royal family. I doubt that has happened. It's far more likely that Saudi Arabia will agree to a temporary ceasefire - a temporary halt in bomb-dropping - because of huge pressure from the United States and the UK, their main arms suppliers. Jim Mattis, US Defence Secretary, gave Riyadh and its coalition partners 30 days to forge a ceasefire and start talks. The pressure from Washington and London increased suddenly because Yemen is literally being starved to annihilation by the bombing and sea/air/land blockade by the Saudi coalition. But both Washington and London also realised that the murder of Khashoggi provided a unique moment for trying to bring the Yemen bombing to an end. MBS knows that too although he will never admit it. And western diplomats who have been talking to the Saudis about stopping the bombing of Yemen will no doubt have had one piece of advice from their respective governments: "Don't mention Khashoggi."