4th member of Saudi royal family detained, insider says
At least four Saudi princes have been ensnared in a wave of detentions ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a person close to the royal family said Saturday.
Prince Nayef bin Ahmed, who held senior positions in the military, was detained Friday along with at least three other senior members of the royal family.
The full extent of the roundup remains unclear.
Analysts who follow the royal family said Saturday that the latest wave of arrests raised questions about whether Crown Prince Mohammed would soon seek to take formal power from his aging father, King Salman, 84.
Others suggested that the crown prince, who has established himself as the de facto ruler of the kingdom in the name of his father, was worried about discontent within the royal family as plummeting oil prices strained the country’s budget and economy.
Prince Nayef has held positions in the interior ministry and military and once headed army intelligence, according to a Saudi military website.
But he did not appear to have any position in the government at the time of his detention.
He was detained together with his father, Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, who is the last surviving full brother of the king.
“It is surprising he would move on Prince Ahmed with the king’s authority still there,” said Kristin Smith Diwan, a scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.
The recent wave of arrests has sent tremors of fear through the family and raised questions about the status of the king, three people close to the family said.
The king was photographed in recent days meeting with the visiting British foreign secretary.
A doctor with ties to the Saudi hospital that treats many royals said the hospital had received no word that the king was ill.
“It looks like MBS is just taking out all rivals,” said Michael Stephens, a scholar at the Royal United Services Institute, using the initials for the crown prince.
“It is either the case that the king is on his deathbed or MBS just thinks this is a good time to bury the bad news,” he said.