President Joe Biden said he raised the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi during a meeting Friday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, pushing back against criticism that he ignored Saudi Arabia's human rights record by traveling there.

"I said, very straightforwardly, for an American president to be silent on an issue of human rights is inconsistent with who we are and who I am," Biden said. "I'll always stand up for our values."

Biden recounted the moment to reporters following two hours of meetings with the crown prince and King Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud.

He basically said that he was not personally responsible for it," Biden said of the crown prince. "I indicated that I thought he was."  

Biden has faced criticism for meeting with the crown prince, who U.S. intelligence officials believe ordered Khashoggi's murder in 2018. 

Biden's meeting with MBS, as he is known, came after a multi-day visit to Israel and earlier events on Friday in East Jerusalem, where he tried to address the plight of Palestinians even as he acknowledged he can't give them what they want. 

The latest

Biden's fist bump: After arriving in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Biden greeted bin Salman with a fist bump, a move that provoked blowback from critics. The White House had said Biden would refrain from handshakes during his Middle East trip because of COVID-19 concerns – providing an excuse to avoid controversial interaction with Saudi leaders. Yet Biden shook many hands during his trip to Israel, and he shook hands with the Saudi king.