Saudi crown prince to visit Algeria amid international outcry over Khashoggi murder

Saudi Arabia's crown prince will stop at Algiers on his way back from the G20 summit in Argentina, amid international outcry over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will arrive in Algiers on Sunday,  Algerian state media said as par of "the close brotherly relations between the two countries".

It will give "new impetus to biliteral cooperation (and) the realisation of partnerships and investment projects", the Algerian presidential statement said.

Prince Mohammed attended the G20 summit in Algeria this week amid controversy surrounding the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom's Istanbul consulate on 2 October.

Turkish and US intelligence have reportedly concluded that Mohammed bin Salman was behind the critic's death, something strongly denied by Riyadh.

Prince Mohammad was reportedly rebuked by a number of international leaders at the summit over Khashoggi's murder. 

His planned visit to Algeria has sparked an outcry from journalists, politicians and intellectuals, including Secretary General of the leftist Workers' Party Louisa Hanoun who called in a "provocation". 

Abderrazak Makri, head of the Islamist Movement of Society for Peace, told reporters the Crown Prince's visit "does not serve Algeria's image nor its reputation". 

"He is responsible for the death of a large number of children and civilians in Yemen, the jailing of many Saudi citizens who did not commit a crime, and lastly, the crime against Jamal Khashoggi," he said. 

Seventeen prominent Algerian journalists and intellectuals sharply criticised the Saudi leader, according to a statement seen by AFP.

"The world is certain that he ordered a terrible crime against the journalist Jamal Khashoggi," they wrote.

Among the signatories were writer and journalist Kamel Daoud and prominent novelist Rachid Boudjedra.

Prince Mohammed has in recent days travelled to the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and Tunisia, before heading to Buenos Aires on Wednesday for the G20 summit.

His visit to Tunis was greeted by demonstrations against Khashoggi's murder and the war in Yemen.