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United Arab Emirates Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed (right) and Ibrahim al-Assaf, Saudi state minister, attend the opening of the Future Investment Initiative conference.

Saudi bodyguards patrol during the opening of the Future Investment Initiative conference.

(From right) Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of Russian Direct Investment Fund, Yasir al-Rumayyan, Saudi managing director of Public investment Fund, and Khaldoon Khalifa al-Mubarak, managing director and CEO of Mubadala Investment Company, leave after speaking at the opening of the Future Investment Initiative conference, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Embattled Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman received a standing ovation when he made a brief appearance Tuesday at a glitzy economic forum in Riyadh that has been boycotted by a host of global business leaders.

The 33-year-old prince — the kingdom’s de facto ruler, who has been suspected of ordering the murder of journalist and critic Jamal Khashoggi — sat in the audience on the opening day of the three-day Future Investment Initiative, dubbed “Davos in the Desert.”

He showed up just before a later afternoon presentation about technology but did not make any statements, according to the New York Times, which reported that he received the standing O.

Saudi organizers sought to portray the event as business as usual as they announced 12 “mega deals” worth more than $50 billion in oil, gas, infrastructure and other sectors.

They also sought to rally around Prince Mohammad, 82-year-old King Salman’s powerful son whose reform credentials have been tainted by the scandal despite denials he had any involvement in the killing.

Despite the boycott, the conference still attracted about 3,500 people.