His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa today held a telephone call with HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and congratulated him on being chosen as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, and appointment as Deputy Premier and Defence Minister.
The replacement of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia demonstrates a shift in priorities with regard to the country's policy toward the military, Vladimir Dzhabarov, the first deputy chairman of Russia's Federation Council foreign affairs committee, told Sputnik on Tuesday.
Throughout the early morning, it aired footage of Mohammed bin Nayef pledging allegiance to the younger Mohammed bin Salman who knelt and kissed his older cousin's hand.
Over the weekend, the king had issued a decree restructuring Saudi Arabia's system for prosecutions that stripped Mohammed bin Nayef of longstanding powers overseeing criminal investigations, and instead ordered that a newly-named Office of Public Prosecution and prosecutor report directly to the monarch.
The order, carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, said the meeting would take place after a special prayer Wednesday night amid the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
For Democrats, 'Not Trump' is not enough
And as for the Democrats, they, clearly, are doing something wrong. "They lost this one and are now 0-4 in specials this year". Ultimately, Handel took 52 percent of the vote while Ossoff lost with 48 percent, according to The New York Times.
The royal decree did not nominate a new deputy crown prince.
Mohammed bin Nayef was once a towering figure credited with crushing al-Qaida's cells in Saudi Arabia. While Trump has made statements siding with Saudi Arabia, Washington has shown mounting frustration over the kingdom's role in the crisis. Dubbed by Washington insiders as "the prince of counterterrorism", he developed a ground-breaking program that rehabilitates individuals convicted of terrorism-related crimes. Despite his longstanding Washington ties, it was Mohammed bin Salman, who embarked on major overseas visits, including a trip to the White House to meet Trump in March. Since the age is on his side, experts believe that it may promote internal stability in the Saudi Kingdom.
The newly-minted crown prince also raised eyebrows when he ruled out any chance of dialogue with Iran.
The war, launched more than two years ago, has failed to dislodge Iranian-allied rebels known as Houthis from the capital, Sanaa, and has had devastating effects on the impoverished country.
Comments