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World Affairs Saudi Intrigues
FRONTLINE
|December 8, 2017
The purge of the Saudi royal family, camouflaged as an anti-corruption drive, has torn apart its erstwhile unity, while the forced resignation of the Lebanese Prime Minister has reinforced the battle lines in the volatile neighbourhood.
IT WAS A HECTIC TWO WEEKS FOR THE SAUDI Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, or MBS as he is now popularly known. In the first fortnight of November, the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia initiated a purge that involved the arrest of some of his royal half-brothers, leading businessmen, artistes and media professionals. He then announced a full blockade on Yemen after a missile fired from that country fell perilously close to the international airport in Riyadh, the Saudi capital. After that he did something unparalleled in the history of contemporary diplomacy or politics in the region. The Prime Minister of Lebanon, Saad Hariri, was urgently summoned to Riyadh by the Saudi King. According to reports, he was promptly arrested after landing and given a prepared speech of resignation to read.
This story is from the December 8, 2017 edition of FRONTLINE.
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