‘Saudi crown prince is on the warpath’

GLOBAL Spotlight

THIS week the Saudi King reordered the kingdom’s inner power structure with potentially major implications for the future of Saudi Arabia and the region.

By naming his 31-year-old son, Mohammed bin Salman, as crown prince, sweeping aside his son’s elder rival, Mohammed bin Nayef, the king has largely determined the future trajectory of the country in terms of both foreign and domestic policy.

For those who cringed at Saudi Arabia’s championing of the war of aggression against Yemen, there will be more of the same given that the new crown prince has presided over this war as defence minister.

He has shown no signs of backing down, despite the war being unpopular at home, and the rising costs of the bombing campaign.

There has been no thought for the Yemeni civilians facing starvation on the ground, who are being denied food and medical supplies by the Saudi-imposed naval blockade on that country.

Saudi air strikes have devastated Yemen’s already weak infrastructure and left the country on the brink of famine, even as the front line of the battle is largely frozen.

By the time the Saudi-led coalition ceases the military campaign, the poorest country in the Middle East will be devastated.

But perhaps more serious for the peace and stability of the region is Bin Salman’s hawkish attitude towards Iran, which suggests a serious armed conflagration in the near term is more than likely.

Bin Salman recently declared: “We won’t wait for the battle to be in Saudi Arabia; we’ll work so the battle is for them in Iran.”

Just before becoming crown prince, Bin Salman ruled out any dialogue with Iran and pledged to