Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has been forced to escape a room full of attendees at his own investment forum as he was overrun by people hoping to get a picture with him.

MBS’s popularity doesn’t seem to be affected by accusations of masterminding the murder of dissident Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, with his appearance among the crowd in Riyadh on Tuesday causing a major stir.

A video by RT shows the guests of the forum – all prominent Saudi and foreign investors, bankers and entrepreneurs – snatching out their phones and almost fighting for the best spot to take a picture of the royalty.

The unexpected photo op nearly caused a stampede, which threatened Salman’s safety and forced him to retreat.

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There was clearly fear on the face of the de facto Saudi ruler, who got more attention than he bargained for, as he realized that he was unable to make his way through crowd.

The annual Future Investment Initiative Forum often referred to as ‘Davos in the Desert’ was founded by Salman in 2017 to attract foreign capital and create jobs in Saudi Arabia.

However, this year’s gathering was ignored by many key US and European business figures, who refused to travel to Riyadh over the Khashoggi ordeal.

After weeks of denial, Saudi Arabia acknowledged on Saturday that the Washington Post columnist, who criticized the monarchy in his articles, was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Riyadh claimed that Khashoggi died in a “fistfight,” but unnamed officials cited by the Turkish media said that the 59-year-old was actually slain by a team of Saudi assassins and dismembered while still alive.

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