Monday9 March 2020 ★ FINANCIAL TIMES 3
S I M E O N K E R R— D U BA I
A N D R E W E N G L A N D— LO N D O N
Saudi Arabia has launched a sweeping
crackdown against senior royals and
security officers in a purge that appears
to be part of Crown Prince Mohammed
bin Salman’s efforts to tighten his grip
onpowerbytargetingpotentialrivals.
At least three princes were among
thosedetained,includingPrinceAhmed
bin Abdulaziz, 77, a brother of King Sal-
man considered by many as an obstacle
to Prince ohammed’s succession, twoM
peoplebriefedonthemattersaid.
Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the
formercrownprinceandinteriorminis-
ter, was also detained on Friday. He is
believed to have been under house
arrest since being replaced as crown
princebyPrinceMohammed n2017.i
The widening crackdown has
extended to the “entire inner circle” of
Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, said one
personclosetotheroyalfamily.
The number ofprincesarrested could
be as many as 20, said another person
briefed on the operation. Other officials
and officers were also taken into cus-
tody,thepersonadded.
The crackdown appears intended to
remind thefamily that any hints of per-
ceived disloyalty would not be tolerated.
“The key is the top two guys,” said the
personclosetotheroyalcourt,referring
to Prince Ahmed and Prince Moham-
med bin Nayef. “The others that came
withthemareperipheral.”
The person added: “They wanted to
send a message to family for all to fall
into line and Prince Ahmed was the big-
gest fish. He had been making noises for
awhilesopatienceranout.”
AliShihabi,aSaudicommentatorand
supporterofthecrownprince,dismissed
rumours of a coup attempt, adding that
“whatpeoplemustappreciateisthatthe
royal family has had to go through a
very delicate generational succession.. given the large number of princes.
whoweretechnicallyeligibletosucceed”.
“What is important is that this proc-
ess is playing out without any blood-
shed, which is a rare occurrence in his-
tory,” Mr Shihabi said on Twitter. “The
message is very clear that nothing will
be allowed to destabilise the country or
causeanybloodshed.”
He added that the king and crown
prince“areinabsolutecontrol”.
King Salman swore in two Saudi
ambassadorsyesterday, according to
the official news agency, which pub-
lishedpicturesshowinghiminapparent
good health. The event appeared
designed to quell rumours about his
health. The 84-year-old monarchalso
hadlunchwithseniorprincesonFriday,
apersonfamiliarwiththemattersaid.
Thegovernmenthasnotrespondedto
arequestforcomment.
Speculation had swirled on Saturday
thattheking’shealthhadpersuadedthe
crown prince to launch the crackdown
tosmoothanytransition.
As newsof the arrests spread, many
government supporters took to social
media to express their backingfor the
leadership, with several nationalistic
hashtagstrendingoverthepast48hours.
“Saudi Arabia will remain standing
tall and safe despite the plots of haters
and enemies,” television presenter
Tariqal-Harbisaidinatweetfeaturinga
pictureofthekingandcrownprince.
Prince Mohammed, the conservative
kingdom’s de facto leader, has launched
far-reaching social and economic
reforms while projecting Saudi power
across the region. But his drive to mod-
ernise as been accompanied byh crack-
downs that have targeted members of
the royal family, businessmen, academ-
ics,activists,bloggersandjournalists.
He hasshown zero tolerancefor criti-
cism and the world’s top oil exporter
was plunged into its biggest diplomatic
crisis in years after Saudi agents killed
Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom’s con-
sulateinIstanbulinOctober2018.
Riyadh blamed thejournalist’smur-
der on a rogue operation, and Prince
Mohammed’s supporters and Riyadh’s
western allies hoped the 34-year-old
would heed lessons from theexperi-
ence. He has avoided controversy since
thenasSaudiArabiapreparestohosttheG20 group of nations meeting this year.
But the arrests of the royals will cast
further scrutiny on his autocratic lead-
ership and suggest he is reverting to his
aggressive approach of dealing with any
perceived threats, even from those fam-
ily m emberswhoappearedtohavebeen
neutralisedbyhispreviouscrackdowns.
It is unclear how much of a threat
Prince Ahmed — who was overlooked as
apotentialsuccessorafterabriefstintas
interior minister in 2012 and has kept a
low profile since his return to the king-
dom — and Prince Mohammed bin
Nayef posed to the crown prince’s grip
on power. The latter’s friends say he has
been subject to close monitoring since
hewasreplacedascrownprince.
Prince Mohammed, whose rapid rise
three years ago shook up the traditional
succession process, has pushed through
aseriesofcontentiouspolicies.
Months after he became crown
prince, he launched ananti-corruption
crackdown hatt led to more than 300
princes and businessmen beingdetained at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in
Riyadh. Most have been released, but
many were freed only after they agreed
totransfercashandassetstothestate.
The government claimed it netted
more than $100bn n the purge, but thei
crackdownwasalsoseenasanearlysign
oftheprince’s rivetocementhispowerd
and t hatnobodywasuntouchable.
The kingdom has also been criticised
foritsroleinthefive-yearwarinYemen,
where a Saudi-led coalition has been
accused of killing thousands of civilians
in air strikes that have struck homes,
hospitals,weddingsandfunerals.
Saudi Arabia is expected to face
another tough year as oil prices, ts eco-i
nomic lifeline, have plunged about 30
per cent since January ascoronavirus
has spread across the globe. The disease
has caused the kingdom, which is home
to Mecca and Medina, Islam’s two holi-
est sites, totemporarily suspend het
entry of religious pilgrims during the
Umrah season, an important source of
revenueandjobsforSaudiArabia.Saudi crown
prince purges
rivals to tighten
grip on power
Crackdown aims to smooth transition
as rumours swirl over king’s health
Royal ties:
Crown Prince
Mohammed bin
Salman, left,
speaks to Prince
Mohammed bin
Nayef in Riyadh
in 2016
Bandar al-Jaloud/Saudi Royal
Palace/AFP/Getty ImagesI N T E R N AT I O N A L
‘What is
importantis that this
process isplaying out
without anybloodshed,
which isa rare
occurrencein history’
MARCH 9 2020 Section:World Time: 3/20208/ - 17:19 User:lyndsey.jones Page Name:WORLD2 USA, Part,Page,Edition:USA, 3, 1