Reports: Dozens of Princes, Princesses Fleeing Saudi Arabia in Anticipation of Death

Local Editor

Dozens of Saudi Princes and Princesses are leaving Saudi Arabia in fear for their lives after the empowerment of King Salman and his son Muhammad bin Salman as deputy crown prince.

A large number of the Saudi royal family believe that their lives are in danger and fear being assassinated at any moment.

According to reports, several Princes and Princess are not allowed to leave the country and are under supervision of security bodies in Saudi Arabia.

The report came after a US-based think-tank raised the possibility that Saudi King Salman might leave the power in favor of his son Muhammad bin Salman who is now the deputy crown prince and defense minister.

"Increasingly, the kingdom's crucial decision maker is seen as thirty-one-year-old Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman [aka MbS] rather than eighty-year-old King Salman or fifty-seven-year-old Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef [aka MbN]. The king, described by the New York Times as suffering from "memory lapses," is believed to favor MbS, the eldest son of his favorite wife, as his successor," the Washington Institute for Near East Policy wrote in November.

"Making that happen anytime soon would be a challenge, however. For one thing, Saudi Kings traditionally keep going until they drop - King Abdullah died in 2015 at ninety-two, and King Fahd was eighty-four when he eventually passed away in 2005, ten years after suffering a debilitating stroke. Palace politics and rivalries may pose a formidable obstacle as well," it added.

The Washington Institute concluded: "King Salman has already exercised his royal authority to change the crown prince, naming Prince Muhammad bin Nayef three months after taking the throne, so he could do so again at any time. Whether Prince Muhammad bin Nayef and the wider royal family would accept Prince Muhammad bin Salman being made crown prince or the king abdicating in his favour is debatable, since support for the young prince's forceful policies as defence minister and economic ‘visionary' is hardly universal."

It is believed that Prince Muhammad bin Salman is thirsty for power and would kill his father if he had the chance. His rise in power had sparked the tensions within the royal family.

Furthermore, Saudi Sources revealed in late June that Saudi Arabia's young deputy crown prince is being advised by the UAE on how he can win backing from the US and ascend to the throne by the end of the year.

Two "well-placed Saudi sources" have said that de facto UAE ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan is advising Mohammed on a two-pronged strategy to become Washington's preferred choice as the next Saudi ruler.

The first Saudi source said bin Zayed has told bin Salman that he must "end the rule of Wahhabism" if he wants to be accepted by the Americans.

Wahhabism is the radical ideology dominating Saudi Arabia which has inspired Takfiri groups such as Daesh [Arabic acronym for "ISIS" / "ISIL"] and al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front to wreak havoc in the Middle East.

Bin Zayed had also told bin Salman that he must open a "strong channel of communication" with "Israel" if he is to be Washington's preferred candidate to be king.

The second Saudi source reportedly said bin Salman is willing to win the backing of Washington after telling close associates recently that he would complete the mission of becoming king before the end of the year.

The 30-year-old bin Salman, who also serves as the Saudi defense minister, had been granted increasing power since he was named the third in line to the throne last April.

He is heading up the country's economic reforms plan, the kingdom's policy towards Syria and its deadly aggression against Yemen.

The young prince's meteoric rise, however, had sparked tensions within the Saudi royal family.

According to the report, bin Salman would seek to fundamentally change the role of religion in the kingdom on bin Zayed's advice.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team