*DUBAI – Saudi Arabia’s crown prince meant to send a strong message tocritics within the royal family by detaining senior princes this weekend:Don’t you dare oppose my succession to the throne.*
The main target in the crackdown, sources said, is King Salman’s brother,Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, one of only three members of the AllegianceCouncil, the royal body that endorses the line of succession, to opposeMohammed bin Salman becoming crown prince in 2017 in a palace coup.
Four sources with royal connections said the move aimed to ensurecompliance within the ruling Al Saud family, in which there have beenrumblings of discontent, ahead of an eventual succession upon the king’sdeath or abdication.
One of the sources described the detentions as a preemptive effort toensure Prince Mohammed’s “ascent will be rubber stamped by the AllegianceCouncil when the time comes”.
Read Top Stories
Ahmed, 78, was detained on Friday along with Mohammed bin Nayef, who wascrown prince until he was ousted in 2017 and replaced by Mohammed binSalman. Ahmed’s son Nayef and Mohammed’s brother Nawaf were also detained,said two other sources with royal connections.
The princes have been held at royal villas in the capital Riyadh and somewere allowed to contact their families, those sources said.
