Officials close to Saudi Arabia's crown prince discussed plans in 2017 with businessmen to potentially use private companies to assassinate Iranian enemies, The New York Times reported on Sunday.

The Times, citing three sources familiar with the talks, reported that aides to Saudi Maj. Gen. Ahmed al-Assiri brought up possibly assassinating Qassim Suleimani, a high-ranking official in Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps.

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The talks came in March 2017, more than a year before journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, a killing that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is suspected of ordering.

Assiri's aides also asked the businessmen whether they "conducted kinetics," according to the Times, and said they were looking to kill top officials in Iran.

According to the Times, the businessmen at the meeting included Lebanese-American businessman George Nader and Israeli businessman Joel Zamel.

The proposal from the aides to Assiri came during a series of meetings between Saudi Arabia and the businessmen, according to the Times.

A spokesman for Saudi Arabia and lawyers for Nader and Zamel all declined comment to the Times.

The Times noted that both Nader and Zamel are witnesses in special counsel Robert Mueller Robert (Bob) MuellerCNN's Toobin warns McCabe is in 'perilous condition' with emboldened Trump CNN anchor rips Trump over Stone while evoking Clinton-Lynch tarmac meeting The Hill's 12:30 Report: New Hampshire fallout MORE's investigation. The Times also noted that Psy-Group, a company owned by Zamel, in 2016 proposed a social media manipulation plan to the Trump campaign.