Lately it is viral on social media that crown prince Muhammad bin Salman's mother is an Ethopian Jewish woman. She is the 3rd wife of King Salman bin Abdul Aziz.
Muḥammad bin Salman al Su‘ud; was born on 1 August 1985, also known by his initials MBS, is Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia. He is the seventh son of King Salman of Saudi Arabia and grandson of the nation's founder, King Abdulaziz.
Mohammed was born as the first child of Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz and his third wife Fahda bint Falah Al Hithlain. Fahda is a granddaughter of Rakan bin Hithlain and great-granddaughter of Dhaydan bin Hithlain, who were heads of the Ajman tribe. It is said that mother of MBS is an Ethopian Jew.
After obtaining a law degree from King Saud University, he was an advisor to his father. He was appointed deputy crown prince and Defence Minister after Salman became king, then promoted to crown prince in 2017. He succeeded his father as prime minister in 2022.
Since his appointment as crown prince in 2017, Mohammed has introduced a series of social and economic reforms. These include regulations restricting the powers of the religious police and improving women's rights, the removal of the ban on female drivers in 2018 and weakening the male-guardianship system in 2019. His Saudi Vision 2030 program aims to reduce the Saudi economy's reliance on oil through investment in non-oil sectors including technology and tourism. Under Mohammed, Saudi Arabia began co-ordinating its energy policy with Russia and also strengthened its relations with China.
Mohammed leads an authoritarian government. Those regarded as political dissidents are systematically repressed through methods including imprisonment and torture. Mohammed was the architect of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen and was involved in the escalation of the Qatar diplomatic crisis, as well as a 2018 diplomatic dispute with Canada. Between 2017 and 2019, he led the purge of competing Saudi political and economic elites involved in financial corruption, seizing up to $800 billion in assets and cash and cementing control over Saudi politics.
Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
Monday 15 April 2024
News ID: 51411Publish Date : 03 April 2018 - 21:38
MBS Admits the Jewish Roots of the Saudi Clan
By: S. Nawabzadeh
The latest remarks about his newfound cousins, the Zionists, by Mohamed bin Salman (MBS) in the US, where he is on a three-week long pilgrimage did not surprise anyone.
As a matter of fact, his words "Israel has the right to exist”, at a time when Palestinians are being bathed in their own blood in their own ancestral lands by the Zionist usurpers, were tacit admission that existence of the spurious entity called Saudi Arabia on the map of West Asia is as illegal as that of Israel.
It is but natural for the two British creations (between 1932 and 1948), now sitting snugly in the lap of the Americans to complement each other for their crimes against humanity and to spew poison at the Islamic Republic of Iran for its defence of Islam against attempts by the unholy trinity (US, Israel and Saudi Arabia) to terrorize and destabilize Muslim countries.
The self-imposed Heir Apparent who has imprisoned his own mother for fear that she would apprise his ailing father, King Salman, of the treachery of her own brat, is living in a fool’s paradise. He thinks he is all set to rule as king for the next fifty years with the blessings of Washington, little realizing that the fate of nations fluctuates like quicksilver, with no one knowing what awaits the seemingly powerful US, let alone whether Saudi Arabia or Israel would exist on the world map in the next couple of decades.
MBS, who has pawned the stolen oil wealth of the deprived people of eastern Arabia to Uncle Sam for a huge arsenal of weapons of all kinds through which he dreams of conquering Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and even Iran, while his armies are unable to browbeat the barefooted and lightly armed people of Yemen into submission, is completely delusional.
In fact, the Jewish origins of the Saudi clan of Najd which was Arabicized in the course of history, has so infatuated him that he openly dallies with the Israeli lobbies in the US, including AIPAC, and the other day uttered blasphemous words that Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) had a Jewish wife.
He neither knows the history of Islam or the region nor the basic tenets of the faith of Islam. In other words, despite his pretension to be a Sunni Muslim, he doesn’t even know that the Sunnah of the Prophet in accordance with the divine commandment in the holy Qur’an, prohibits Muslims from marrying spouses of other faiths, unless they convert to Islam.
So, how could the Prophet of Islam had married a Jewish woman?
MBS seems to be totally unaware that Safiya bint Hayayy had ceased to be a Jewess when she decided to become Muslim and marry Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) following the fall of Khaibar in 7 AH.
This reminds us of the famous phrase in one of the supplications to God Almighty by Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS), the 4th Infallible Heir of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA). "Glory to God, that our enemies are idiots”.
https://kayhan.ir/en/news/51411/mbs-adm ... saudi-clan
News ID: 51411Publish Date : 03 April 2018 - 21:38
MBS Admits the Jewish Roots of the Saudi Clan
By: S. Nawabzadeh
The latest remarks about his newfound cousins, the Zionists, by Mohamed bin Salman (MBS) in the US, where he is on a three-week long pilgrimage did not surprise anyone.
As a matter of fact, his words "Israel has the right to exist”, at a time when Palestinians are being bathed in their own blood in their own ancestral lands by the Zionist usurpers, were tacit admission that existence of the spurious entity called Saudi Arabia on the map of West Asia is as illegal as that of Israel.
It is but natural for the two British creations (between 1932 and 1948), now sitting snugly in the lap of the Americans to complement each other for their crimes against humanity and to spew poison at the Islamic Republic of Iran for its defence of Islam against attempts by the unholy trinity (US, Israel and Saudi Arabia) to terrorize and destabilize Muslim countries.
The self-imposed Heir Apparent who has imprisoned his own mother for fear that she would apprise his ailing father, King Salman, of the treachery of her own brat, is living in a fool’s paradise. He thinks he is all set to rule as king for the next fifty years with the blessings of Washington, little realizing that the fate of nations fluctuates like quicksilver, with no one knowing what awaits the seemingly powerful US, let alone whether Saudi Arabia or Israel would exist on the world map in the next couple of decades.
MBS, who has pawned the stolen oil wealth of the deprived people of eastern Arabia to Uncle Sam for a huge arsenal of weapons of all kinds through which he dreams of conquering Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and even Iran, while his armies are unable to browbeat the barefooted and lightly armed people of Yemen into submission, is completely delusional.
In fact, the Jewish origins of the Saudi clan of Najd which was Arabicized in the course of history, has so infatuated him that he openly dallies with the Israeli lobbies in the US, including AIPAC, and the other day uttered blasphemous words that Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) had a Jewish wife.
He neither knows the history of Islam or the region nor the basic tenets of the faith of Islam. In other words, despite his pretension to be a Sunni Muslim, he doesn’t even know that the Sunnah of the Prophet in accordance with the divine commandment in the holy Qur’an, prohibits Muslims from marrying spouses of other faiths, unless they convert to Islam.
So, how could the Prophet of Islam had married a Jewish woman?
MBS seems to be totally unaware that Safiya bint Hayayy had ceased to be a Jewess when she decided to become Muslim and marry Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) following the fall of Khaibar in 7 AH.
This reminds us of the famous phrase in one of the supplications to God Almighty by Imam Zain al-Abedin (AS), the 4th Infallible Heir of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA). "Glory to God, that our enemies are idiots”.
https://kayhan.ir/en/news/51411/mbs-adm ... saudi-clan
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
Statement by American journalist Mike Evans regarding Muhammad bin Salman 'MBS'.
Evans claimed that the leaders in Saudi Arabia are more pro Israilis. He said I met with MBS and asked him,"what you think of Jews and christians"? MBS replied I like them both. Evans further claimed that mother of MBS is an Ethopian Jewish woman and in childhood he was raised by an Ethopian Jewish woman in his father's house. MBS stopped hatred in country about Israel, and ordered mullahs in mosques to avoid anti semitism in sermons.
Evans claimed that the leaders in Saudi Arabia are more pro Israilis. He said I met with MBS and asked him,"what you think of Jews and christians"? MBS replied I like them both. Evans further claimed that mother of MBS is an Ethopian Jewish woman and in childhood he was raised by an Ethopian Jewish woman in his father's house. MBS stopped hatred in country about Israel, and ordered mullahs in mosques to avoid anti semitism in sermons.
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
Princess Sara wife of crown prince Muhammad bin Salman 'MBS'
Princess Sara bint Mashour al Saud, the wife of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, holds a significant position in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Her remarkable royal lineage, as the granddaughter of Saudi Arabia’s founder, King Abdulaziz, is something to be admired. While her life remains shrouded in privacy.
Princess Sara was born in Riyadh in 1987 and belongs to the prestigious Al Saud dynasty, the governing royal family of Saudi Arabia. Her lineage can be traced back to King Abdulaziz, the founding pillar of the nation. Additionally, she shares a half-brotherly bond with Mohammed bin Salman through her father’s lineage.
Royal Lineage: Sara’s roots trace back to King Abdulaziz, the architect of modern Saudi Arabia. It’s not just a lineage; it’s a legacy that she carries with her, a blend of history and responsibility.
Love & Marriage: Married to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman since 2008, Sara’s life is a narrative of love and partnership, set against the backdrop of a nation in flux. Five children later, the story is still unfolding.
Hidden Strength: Sara’s resilience is her armor. She’s faced personal challenges, yet her grace remains unscathed. It’s a story of quiet strength, one that defies the tabloid headlines.
Philanthropic Endeavors: Sara is not just a princess; she’s a visionary. She’s at the helm of a non-profit science and innovation center, a project that promises to be a cornerstone in Saudi Arabia’s intellectual renaissance.
Family Life: Behind the palace walls, Sara is a mother, a wife. It’s a balancing act, a daily dance between duty and devotion.
Cultural Influence: In a society where the role of women is rapidly evolving, Sara is both a symbol and a participant. She’s not just adapting to change; she’s part of the force driving it.
Future Vision: As we look to the horizon, Sara’s role is expanding. Her ambitions are not confined to the domestic sphere; they’re aligned with the future of a nation.
.
Princess Sara bint Mashour al Saud, the wife of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, holds a significant position in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Her remarkable royal lineage, as the granddaughter of Saudi Arabia’s founder, King Abdulaziz, is something to be admired. While her life remains shrouded in privacy.
Princess Sara was born in Riyadh in 1987 and belongs to the prestigious Al Saud dynasty, the governing royal family of Saudi Arabia. Her lineage can be traced back to King Abdulaziz, the founding pillar of the nation. Additionally, she shares a half-brotherly bond with Mohammed bin Salman through her father’s lineage.
Royal Lineage: Sara’s roots trace back to King Abdulaziz, the architect of modern Saudi Arabia. It’s not just a lineage; it’s a legacy that she carries with her, a blend of history and responsibility.
Love & Marriage: Married to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman since 2008, Sara’s life is a narrative of love and partnership, set against the backdrop of a nation in flux. Five children later, the story is still unfolding.
Hidden Strength: Sara’s resilience is her armor. She’s faced personal challenges, yet her grace remains unscathed. It’s a story of quiet strength, one that defies the tabloid headlines.
Philanthropic Endeavors: Sara is not just a princess; she’s a visionary. She’s at the helm of a non-profit science and innovation center, a project that promises to be a cornerstone in Saudi Arabia’s intellectual renaissance.
Family Life: Behind the palace walls, Sara is a mother, a wife. It’s a balancing act, a daily dance between duty and devotion.
Cultural Influence: In a society where the role of women is rapidly evolving, Sara is both a symbol and a participant. She’s not just adapting to change; she’s part of the force driving it.
Future Vision: As we look to the horizon, Sara’s role is expanding. Her ambitions are not confined to the domestic sphere; they’re aligned with the future of a nation.
.
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
U.S. officials: Saudi crown prince has hidden his mother from his father, the king.
Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman kept his mother apart from his father, the king, as he amassed power, more than a dozen former and current U.S. officials said.
March 15, 2018, 5:00 AM CDT / Updated
By Carol E. Lee and Courtney Kube
WASHINGTON — When Saudi Arabia's crown prince visits the White House next week, he's expected to be welcomed as a reformer who's expanded women's rights in one of the most restrictive countries in the world, allowing them to drive and attend sports events.
Yet there is one Saudi woman whom U.S. officials say has not benefited from the prince's rise: his own mother. Fourteen current and former senior U.S. officials told NBC News that intelligence shows Prince Mohammed bin Salman — often referred to by his initials MBS — blocked his mother from seeing his father, King Salman, more than two years ago and has kept her away from him as the young prince rapidly amassed power.
Prince Mohammed, a key ally of the Trump White House, has concocted various explanations of his mother's whereabouts over the years, such as that she's out of the country receiving medical treatment, so King Salman would not know his son has been behind her continued absence, the current and former officials said.
U.S. officials interviewed for this story believe, based on several years of intelligence, that MBS took action against his mother because he was concerned that she opposed his plans for a power grab that could divide the royal family and might use her influence with the king to prevent it. The officials said MBS placed his mother under house arrest at least for some time at a palace in Saudi Arabia, without the king's knowledge.
Last June, at just age 31, Prince Mohammed abruptly displaced his cousin to become crown prince of the oil-rich kingdom. He implemented some economic and social changes in the following months, but also made some brazen power moves at home and in the region. In November MBS oversaw the arrests of more than 200 Saudi officials and businessmen, including prominent princes and rival members of the royal family, in what the government has described as a crackdown on corruption.
President Donald Trump defended the Saudi government for "harshly treating" those who were imprisoned as part of the effort. Trump, and his son-in-law and senior White House adviser, Jared Kushner, have embraced MBS as a close partner and critical player in the administration's Middle East strategy.
The White House announced Monday that the president will meet with the crown prince on March 20, saying Trump "looks forward to discussing ways to strengthen ties between the United States and Saudi Arabia and to advance our common security and economic priorities."
But the meeting, which is part of MBS's multistate tour across the U.S., comes as some senior U.S. officials are increasingly concerned his aggressive tactics could sow more instability in the Middle East.
The U.S. intelligence assessment of Prince Mohammed's actions against his mother, which American officials said has long been concealed from both King Salman and the public, is an example of MBS's willingness to remove any perceived impediment to solidifying his position as Saudi Arabia's next king, the current and former officials said.
Officials said the assessment of the dynamic between MBS and his mother, which has not been previously reported, is based on a combination of human intelligence, intercepts and information shared with the U.S. from other countries.
The determination that the crown prince's mother, Princess Fahda bint Falah Al Hathleen, was being kept from King Salman without his knowledge was first made during the Obama administration, the officials said. That assessment has not changed since Trump took office, according to the current officials.
The Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington denied that the princess is under any kind of house arrest or separation from her husband.
Where is King Salman's wife?
The U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the intelligence, said the 82-year-old King Salman has at times been told his third wife is out of the country receiving medical treatment. They said the king has told people around him that he misses her and apparently does not know her true location or status. Multiple U.S. officials have told NBC News previously that their interactions with the king suggest he is not consistently lucid.
At one point during a meeting at the White House in September 2015, King Salman told then-President Barack Obama that his wife was in New York for medical treatment and that he hoped to visit her while in the U.S., officials said. The officials said Obama did not inform the king that his wife was not in New York, but the king's comment was viewed as further evidence of what U.S. officials already had gleaned from intelligence on the royal family.
In early 2016, U.S. officials picked up communications in which MBS was talking about his efforts to keep his mother from his father without the king knowing, according to current and former officials.
A spokesperson for Obama declined to comment, citing the privacy of the former president's conversations with foreign leaders.
The CIA declined comment on any intelligence on the Saudi royal family. A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence also declined comment for this story.
While Prince Mohammed's power base began expanding at home several years ago, his brashest moves have coincided with the strong and early support he's received from the Trump White House.
Less than two months after his inauguration, Trump hosted MBS at the White House, not the then-crown prince, Mohammed bin Nayef. MBS, who began trying to forge close ties with the Trump team immediately after the 2016 election, has spent hours with Kushner in Washington and Riyadh.
A spokesperson for Kushner, who oversees the administration's efforts to reach an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, declined to comment for this story and referred questions to the National Security Council, which also declined comment.
'We've all pinned our hopes on him'
Trump officials view MBS as the best hope for seeing economic and social changes in the tightly controlled kingdom.
"We've all pinned our hopes on him," one senior White House official said.
It's a stark contrast to the U.S.-Saudi relationship during Obama's presidency. Then the two countries clashed over Obama's diplomatic outreach to Iran, Saudi Arabia's main regional adversary.
Now Saudi Arabia is integral to U.S. policy goals in the Middle East, particularly when it comes to blunting Iran's influence in the region and reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
In May, Trump made Saudi Arabia the first foreign country he visited as president. A month later MBS unexpectedly supplanted Prince Mohammed bin Nayef as crown prince. As part of the power shift, bin Nayef was put under house arrest, though the restriction was later lifted.
The crown prince's younger brother, Prince Khaled bin Salman, was named Saudi Arabia's new ambassador to the U.S. in July. Both have the same mother.
"The president and Jared very much see Mohammed Bin Salman as their man in the region," said Andrew Bowen, a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute who focuses on Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.
Trump backed a Saudi-led blockade of Qatar over the advice of some of his own advisers and supported the government's jailing of hundreds of wealthy Saudis accused of corruption. "I have great confidence in King Salman and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, they know exactly what they are doing," Trump wrote on Twitter in November as the arrests came under international scrutiny. "Some of those they are harshly treating have been 'milking' their country for years!"
Many prisoners were released in recent weeks after agreeing to undisclosed financial settlements with the government.
Bowen cautioned, however, that Trump's strong support for MBS's early moves could backfire over time due to the young prince's own "insularity and his own recklessness."
One person close to the royal family said Prince Mohammed and his mother had a falling out several years ago in part because he was concerned she was trying to empower her siblings. This person said MBS wanted to avoid a dynamic that played out with a previous Saudi king in which the brothers of one of his wives became extremely powerful and wealthy.
Fatimah Baeshen, a spokesperson for Saudi Arabia's embassy in Washington, vehemently denied that the crown prince has kept his mother away from the king without the king's knowledge.
"It is absolutely not true and if you would like to ask Her Royal Highness the Princess yourself, this includes asking her in-person, we would be happy to arrange it immediately," Baeshen said in a statement.
NBC News, which first contacted Baeshen about this story on Dec. 22, 2017, did not accept the offer to speak with the princess because the Saudi government would not allow NBC to disclose that one of its reporters had met with her or use any information she provided for this story under any conditions, including if she was granted anonymity to talk about sensitive matters as others in this story were.
Another spokesman for the Saudi embassy then offered for NBC News to speak with sources close to the crown prince's mother, an offer NBC News accepted.
On Jan. 30, Kabil wrote in an email that it was the Saudi government's impression that NBC News would speak with the crown prince's mother and she "would then put you in touch with her circle of confidantes."
NBC responded by reiterating its position that a reporter would not meet with the crown prince's mother unless NBC could disclose that a meeting took place. NBC asked again for names of people close to her whom reporters could contact independently.
Kabil responded by calling NBC's position "reckless," and said it would cause the princess distress and force her into the public spotlight.
"The story is absolutely false and highly offensive," Kabil wrote. "The Princess offered to meet with you privately to personally refute the story but you declined. Instead, you have chosen to rely entirely on unnamed and anonymous sources for your reporting. Thus, your viewers cannot judge your sources' motives or credibility."
Assessing the inner workings of the Saudi royal family can be difficult, particularly when it comes to women, U.S. officials and Saudi experts said. They noted that the wife of a king under house arrest, confined to a palace or denied access to her husband could go unnoticed for quite a while. Such a dynamic could be difficult to determine because the king's wives are rarely seen in public, they said, and it is considered disrespectful to ask about a Saudi man's wife.
Brian Katulis, a senior fellow for national security at the Center for American Progress who has met with top Saudi officials, including the crown prince, said it's been particularly challenging to determine what's happening in the kingdom over the past year because of efforts by different factions to frame what's unfolding.
"In absolute monarchies controlled by a ruling family like Saudi Arabia, it's hard to tell what is actually going on inside these power shifts," Katulis said, adding that he had not heard of any issues related to the crown prince's mother and had no way to verify it.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s- ... er-n847391
Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman kept his mother apart from his father, the king, as he amassed power, more than a dozen former and current U.S. officials said.
March 15, 2018, 5:00 AM CDT / Updated
By Carol E. Lee and Courtney Kube
WASHINGTON — When Saudi Arabia's crown prince visits the White House next week, he's expected to be welcomed as a reformer who's expanded women's rights in one of the most restrictive countries in the world, allowing them to drive and attend sports events.
Yet there is one Saudi woman whom U.S. officials say has not benefited from the prince's rise: his own mother. Fourteen current and former senior U.S. officials told NBC News that intelligence shows Prince Mohammed bin Salman — often referred to by his initials MBS — blocked his mother from seeing his father, King Salman, more than two years ago and has kept her away from him as the young prince rapidly amassed power.
Prince Mohammed, a key ally of the Trump White House, has concocted various explanations of his mother's whereabouts over the years, such as that she's out of the country receiving medical treatment, so King Salman would not know his son has been behind her continued absence, the current and former officials said.
U.S. officials interviewed for this story believe, based on several years of intelligence, that MBS took action against his mother because he was concerned that she opposed his plans for a power grab that could divide the royal family and might use her influence with the king to prevent it. The officials said MBS placed his mother under house arrest at least for some time at a palace in Saudi Arabia, without the king's knowledge.
Last June, at just age 31, Prince Mohammed abruptly displaced his cousin to become crown prince of the oil-rich kingdom. He implemented some economic and social changes in the following months, but also made some brazen power moves at home and in the region. In November MBS oversaw the arrests of more than 200 Saudi officials and businessmen, including prominent princes and rival members of the royal family, in what the government has described as a crackdown on corruption.
President Donald Trump defended the Saudi government for "harshly treating" those who were imprisoned as part of the effort. Trump, and his son-in-law and senior White House adviser, Jared Kushner, have embraced MBS as a close partner and critical player in the administration's Middle East strategy.
The White House announced Monday that the president will meet with the crown prince on March 20, saying Trump "looks forward to discussing ways to strengthen ties between the United States and Saudi Arabia and to advance our common security and economic priorities."
But the meeting, which is part of MBS's multistate tour across the U.S., comes as some senior U.S. officials are increasingly concerned his aggressive tactics could sow more instability in the Middle East.
The U.S. intelligence assessment of Prince Mohammed's actions against his mother, which American officials said has long been concealed from both King Salman and the public, is an example of MBS's willingness to remove any perceived impediment to solidifying his position as Saudi Arabia's next king, the current and former officials said.
Officials said the assessment of the dynamic between MBS and his mother, which has not been previously reported, is based on a combination of human intelligence, intercepts and information shared with the U.S. from other countries.
The determination that the crown prince's mother, Princess Fahda bint Falah Al Hathleen, was being kept from King Salman without his knowledge was first made during the Obama administration, the officials said. That assessment has not changed since Trump took office, according to the current officials.
The Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington denied that the princess is under any kind of house arrest or separation from her husband.
Where is King Salman's wife?
The U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the intelligence, said the 82-year-old King Salman has at times been told his third wife is out of the country receiving medical treatment. They said the king has told people around him that he misses her and apparently does not know her true location or status. Multiple U.S. officials have told NBC News previously that their interactions with the king suggest he is not consistently lucid.
At one point during a meeting at the White House in September 2015, King Salman told then-President Barack Obama that his wife was in New York for medical treatment and that he hoped to visit her while in the U.S., officials said. The officials said Obama did not inform the king that his wife was not in New York, but the king's comment was viewed as further evidence of what U.S. officials already had gleaned from intelligence on the royal family.
In early 2016, U.S. officials picked up communications in which MBS was talking about his efforts to keep his mother from his father without the king knowing, according to current and former officials.
A spokesperson for Obama declined to comment, citing the privacy of the former president's conversations with foreign leaders.
The CIA declined comment on any intelligence on the Saudi royal family. A spokesperson for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence also declined comment for this story.
While Prince Mohammed's power base began expanding at home several years ago, his brashest moves have coincided with the strong and early support he's received from the Trump White House.
Less than two months after his inauguration, Trump hosted MBS at the White House, not the then-crown prince, Mohammed bin Nayef. MBS, who began trying to forge close ties with the Trump team immediately after the 2016 election, has spent hours with Kushner in Washington and Riyadh.
A spokesperson for Kushner, who oversees the administration's efforts to reach an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, declined to comment for this story and referred questions to the National Security Council, which also declined comment.
'We've all pinned our hopes on him'
Trump officials view MBS as the best hope for seeing economic and social changes in the tightly controlled kingdom.
"We've all pinned our hopes on him," one senior White House official said.
It's a stark contrast to the U.S.-Saudi relationship during Obama's presidency. Then the two countries clashed over Obama's diplomatic outreach to Iran, Saudi Arabia's main regional adversary.
Now Saudi Arabia is integral to U.S. policy goals in the Middle East, particularly when it comes to blunting Iran's influence in the region and reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal.
In May, Trump made Saudi Arabia the first foreign country he visited as president. A month later MBS unexpectedly supplanted Prince Mohammed bin Nayef as crown prince. As part of the power shift, bin Nayef was put under house arrest, though the restriction was later lifted.
The crown prince's younger brother, Prince Khaled bin Salman, was named Saudi Arabia's new ambassador to the U.S. in July. Both have the same mother.
"The president and Jared very much see Mohammed Bin Salman as their man in the region," said Andrew Bowen, a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute who focuses on Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States.
Trump backed a Saudi-led blockade of Qatar over the advice of some of his own advisers and supported the government's jailing of hundreds of wealthy Saudis accused of corruption. "I have great confidence in King Salman and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, they know exactly what they are doing," Trump wrote on Twitter in November as the arrests came under international scrutiny. "Some of those they are harshly treating have been 'milking' their country for years!"
Many prisoners were released in recent weeks after agreeing to undisclosed financial settlements with the government.
Bowen cautioned, however, that Trump's strong support for MBS's early moves could backfire over time due to the young prince's own "insularity and his own recklessness."
One person close to the royal family said Prince Mohammed and his mother had a falling out several years ago in part because he was concerned she was trying to empower her siblings. This person said MBS wanted to avoid a dynamic that played out with a previous Saudi king in which the brothers of one of his wives became extremely powerful and wealthy.
Fatimah Baeshen, a spokesperson for Saudi Arabia's embassy in Washington, vehemently denied that the crown prince has kept his mother away from the king without the king's knowledge.
"It is absolutely not true and if you would like to ask Her Royal Highness the Princess yourself, this includes asking her in-person, we would be happy to arrange it immediately," Baeshen said in a statement.
NBC News, which first contacted Baeshen about this story on Dec. 22, 2017, did not accept the offer to speak with the princess because the Saudi government would not allow NBC to disclose that one of its reporters had met with her or use any information she provided for this story under any conditions, including if she was granted anonymity to talk about sensitive matters as others in this story were.
Another spokesman for the Saudi embassy then offered for NBC News to speak with sources close to the crown prince's mother, an offer NBC News accepted.
On Jan. 30, Kabil wrote in an email that it was the Saudi government's impression that NBC News would speak with the crown prince's mother and she "would then put you in touch with her circle of confidantes."
NBC responded by reiterating its position that a reporter would not meet with the crown prince's mother unless NBC could disclose that a meeting took place. NBC asked again for names of people close to her whom reporters could contact independently.
Kabil responded by calling NBC's position "reckless," and said it would cause the princess distress and force her into the public spotlight.
"The story is absolutely false and highly offensive," Kabil wrote. "The Princess offered to meet with you privately to personally refute the story but you declined. Instead, you have chosen to rely entirely on unnamed and anonymous sources for your reporting. Thus, your viewers cannot judge your sources' motives or credibility."
Assessing the inner workings of the Saudi royal family can be difficult, particularly when it comes to women, U.S. officials and Saudi experts said. They noted that the wife of a king under house arrest, confined to a palace or denied access to her husband could go unnoticed for quite a while. Such a dynamic could be difficult to determine because the king's wives are rarely seen in public, they said, and it is considered disrespectful to ask about a Saudi man's wife.
Brian Katulis, a senior fellow for national security at the Center for American Progress who has met with top Saudi officials, including the crown prince, said it's been particularly challenging to determine what's happening in the kingdom over the past year because of efforts by different factions to frame what's unfolding.
"In absolute monarchies controlled by a ruling family like Saudi Arabia, it's hard to tell what is actually going on inside these power shifts," Katulis said, adding that he had not heard of any issues related to the crown prince's mother and had no way to verify it.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s- ... er-n847391
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
Israel deal concerns lead Saudi Arabia’s MBS to ‘fear for his life’
Monitoring Desk Published August 15, 2024
SAUDI crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman has said he fears being assassinated over his support for normalising Saudi-Israeli ties, a move seen as being a clever diplomatic ploy to get a deal Riyadh is comfortable with, US publication Politico reported on Wednesday.
The Saudi royal is said to have mentioned his concerns to members of US Congress, invoking Anwar Sadat — the Egyptian leader who was slain following a peace deal with Israel in the 1980s.
According to Politico, he has also discussed the threats he faces, explaining why any such deal must include a true path to a Palestinian state — especially now that the war in Gaza has heightened Arab fury toward Tel Aviv.
The broad contours of the largely secret and still-developing pact between the Saudis and Washington include multiple commitments, including security guarantees via a treaty, aid on a civilian nuclear program and economic investment in areas such as technology.
The Politico report claimed that in exchange, Saudi Arabia would limit its dealings with China and establish diplomatic ties with Israel.
To MBS’ chagrin, however, the Israeli government has been unwilling to include a credible path to a Palestinian state in the pact. The report described the overtures as “a clever diplomatic marketing strategy.”
Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2024
https://www.dawn.com/news/1852371/israe ... r-his-life
Monitoring Desk Published August 15, 2024
SAUDI crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman has said he fears being assassinated over his support for normalising Saudi-Israeli ties, a move seen as being a clever diplomatic ploy to get a deal Riyadh is comfortable with, US publication Politico reported on Wednesday.
The Saudi royal is said to have mentioned his concerns to members of US Congress, invoking Anwar Sadat — the Egyptian leader who was slain following a peace deal with Israel in the 1980s.
According to Politico, he has also discussed the threats he faces, explaining why any such deal must include a true path to a Palestinian state — especially now that the war in Gaza has heightened Arab fury toward Tel Aviv.
The broad contours of the largely secret and still-developing pact between the Saudis and Washington include multiple commitments, including security guarantees via a treaty, aid on a civilian nuclear program and economic investment in areas such as technology.
The Politico report claimed that in exchange, Saudi Arabia would limit its dealings with China and establish diplomatic ties with Israel.
To MBS’ chagrin, however, the Israeli government has been unwilling to include a credible path to a Palestinian state in the pact. The report described the overtures as “a clever diplomatic marketing strategy.”
Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2024
https://www.dawn.com/news/1852371/israe ... r-his-life
Re: Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman "MBS"
New allegations against MbS go unchallenged by the west
Explosive new allegations about the Saudi crown prince have been met with the usual silence from western governments, who will turn a blind eye for the sake of normalization with Tel Aviv.
Giorgio Cafiero
AUG 31, 2024
Earlier this month, a flurry of headlines in the US and British media spotlighted astounding new allegations against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS).
A former top Saudi intelligence official, Saad al-Jabri, accused MbS of forging his father King Salman’s signature to deploy ground troops to Yemen in 2015, and accused him of conspiring to murder former King Abdullah to make way for his father’s reign. These explosive claims were featured in the BBC documentary The Kingdom: The World’s Most Powerful Prince, prompting a renewed wave of scrutiny regarding MbS’s controversial actions during his rise to power.
Major British tabloids and newspapers like The Sun and The Times quickly picked up the story, running headlines like “Saudi Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’ FORGED his father’s signature to launch Yemen invasion.”
Renewed scrutiny of MbS met with western inaction
These pieces reignited debates around MbS’s governance, his involvement in the Yemen war, the blockade of Qatar, the infamous Ritz-Carlton “shakedown” of Saudi billionaires and officials, and the 2017 saga in which Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri was forced to resign on Saudi TV.
While the Jamal Khashoggi murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul nearly six years ago still lingers in the public memory, these fresh allegations have brought back into focus the contentious early years of the crown prince’s ascent to power as the kingdom’s de facto ruler.
Yet, experts speaking to The Cradle do not believe that these articles about Jabri’s allegation are in any way part of a US and/or UK government-led information campaign designed to put the screws on MbS.
“I don’t think the US government has any interest right now in putting pressure on MbS – certainly not … in this manner right now, or in any other manner,” Dr William Lawrence, a professor of political science and international affairs at American University’s School of International Service, tells The Cradle, adding:
I do know that there are people in the US and Britain that continue to put pressure on MbS, going back to his rise to power and subsequent firings, and going back to the Khashoggi murder. Those people kind of come and go in the media, and I would just call this a coming in the media of that crowd. There are Americans and British people in the crowd, some of whom have connections to both governments. But there’s no governmental effort going on here.
The same is true regarding the British government. At this point, analysts say that policymakers in London are not motivated to leverage pressure on MbS or Saudi Arabia as a country.
“The UK has no real issues with MbS’s Saudi Arabia beyond human rights issues – at the moment at least,” Dr Andreas Krieg, an associate professor at King’s College London, explains to The Cradle.
“The UK government has been fairly positive towards Saudi in terms of how they communicate, how they engage over trade and also security. The relationship between the UK and Riyadh has been a lot more constructive now over the last couple of years than it was six or seven years ago. So, there’s no reason for the UK to put pressure on MbS at this point,” he explained.
On the recent media blitz against MbS, Dr Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, a Fellow for the Middle East at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, says:
Journalists were reporting on an allegation made in a BBC documentary by [Jabri], which is why it was deemed to be newsworthy, given the nature of the allegation that was being made. The documentary itself featured a number of pro-regime voices and was balanced in its overall assessment of MbS.
Pragmatism over principle
The US and Saudi Arabia have long been at odds over a range of sensitive regional and international issues, including Ukraine, Gaza, Israeli normalization, Syria, and OPEC+. These disagreements have fueled some significant tension in Washington and Riyadh’s relationship. In essence, Saudi Arabia has demonstrated its determination to conduct a foreign policy that is increasingly autonomous from the US and much less western-centric in an increasingly multipolar world. And while US policymakers are frustrated over this, they lack the leverage to change Saudi behavior, especially given that they increasingly need Riyadh’s cooperation as West Asia’s conflicts escalate.
The Saudi response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine spoke volumes about Riyadh’s determination to chart its own course on the international stage and navigate multipolarity in manners that the kingdom’s leaders see as most beneficial to Saudi interests.
Not only did Saudi Arabia avoid implementing any of the west’s sanctions on Moscow, but it also maintained close coordination with Russia on energy policies via OPEC+ and even hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin on his first post-February 2022 trip to West Asia. Moreover, Saudi officials refrained from referring to a Russian “invasion” when discussing the conflict.
Despite these frictions, Washington is not airing its grievances publicly. While on the campaign trail in 2019, Joe Biden vowed to treat Saudi Arabia as a “pariah” in response to human rights concerns, his administration has since taken a more pragmatic approach, closely cooperating with the kingdom. In reality, the White House has not treated Saudi Arabia as anything close to a “pariah.”
The US sees Riyadh holding special cards and being uniquely qualified to help Washington advance its interests across many portfolios. Rather than putting pressure on the kingdom, Biden’s team has done much to accommodate Saudi interests. The recent decision to resume the sale of offensive weapons to Riyadh illustrates this point.
The limits of US influence
Despite the Biden administration’s efforts to expand the scope of the 2020 Abraham Accords, Riyadh has stood firmly in favor of its long-held position that Israeli normalization can only happen after (as opposed to before) the brutal and dehumanizing Israeli occupation of Palestinian land ends and a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders is established.
Although the Biden team has sought to bring other Arab states, including Libya, into the Abraham Accords, the White House has been most focused on Saudi Arabia normalizing with Israel – and Biden has long wanted this unrealized possibility to be a centerpiece of his foreign policy legacy. Mindful of Saudi Arabia’s leadership role in the Arab–Islamic world, vast energy resources, and geography, Riyadh formalizing relations with Tel Aviv would constitute a major victory for Washington from the standpoint of integrating Israel into the region.
At the end of the day, the White House sees Saudi Arabia as too important and influential a country for the US to ostracize.
Quickly shrugging off his election rhetoric against the Saudi crown prince, Biden made a controversial trip to Jeddah five months after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and had his famous “fist bump” moment with MbS. As former US ambassador to Tunisia, Gordon Gray tells The Cradle:
President Biden’s meeting with MbS in Jeddah … [in] July 2022 …reflected his realization that the United States could no longer treat Saudi Arabia as a ‘pariah,’ as candidate Biden had proposed in November 2019, if it wanted to advance US security interests in the Middle East.
“The Biden team has clearly concluded that MbS’ human rights record is no longer a motivating concern, as evidenced by the decision to once again allow the sale of so-called offensive weapons to the Saudis,” Dr Annelle Sheline, a Research Fellow in the Middle East program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, explains to The Cradle.
Pushing for normalization with Israel
The Biden administration will continue to value Saudi Arabia as a key player that Washington must work with, both when it comes to limiting the Gaza war’s spillover effects throughout West Asia and containing the region’s Resistance Axis, in addition to winding down the Sudanese conflict.
If the Israeli war on Gaza is over before Biden's term expires, his team will want to see Riyadh normalize with Tel Aviv - an obsession of this administration, the rest of Washington's policy establishment, and Israel.
Regardless of whether Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump enters the Oval Office in early 2025, this US-led push to bring the kingdom into the Abraham Accords will remain a key part of Washington’s West Asia foreign policy, even if such an outcome is highly unrealistic given Israel’s refusal to make even minimal concessions to the Palestinians.
US officials are well aware that any government-led information campaign to humiliate MbS would be counterproductive from the standpoint of trying to bring Saudi Arabia into the Israeli normalization camp.
Meanwhile, the Jabri case continues to unfold in Canada, where he has been living since the 2017 palace coup. When a former Saudi intelligence official like Jabri makes serious allegations against MbS, it is understandable why many journalists report on these claims.
Jabri has his own motivations for ensuring that, even as MbS rises as a global statesman, the west does not forget certain aspects of his ascent to power. Journalists, activists, and concerned citizens in the west who oppose their governments’ dealings with MbS and his welcome in their countries are eager to maintain pressure on the Saudi crown prince.
While western policymakers, particularly in the US and UK, display no overt intentions to pressure MbS at this time, last week's disparaging media headlines constituted a swat at a Saudi leader who holds the keys to numerous western interests in his hands.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Cradle.
https://thecradle.co/articles-id/26635
Explosive new allegations about the Saudi crown prince have been met with the usual silence from western governments, who will turn a blind eye for the sake of normalization with Tel Aviv.
Giorgio Cafiero
AUG 31, 2024
Earlier this month, a flurry of headlines in the US and British media spotlighted astounding new allegations against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS).
A former top Saudi intelligence official, Saad al-Jabri, accused MbS of forging his father King Salman’s signature to deploy ground troops to Yemen in 2015, and accused him of conspiring to murder former King Abdullah to make way for his father’s reign. These explosive claims were featured in the BBC documentary The Kingdom: The World’s Most Powerful Prince, prompting a renewed wave of scrutiny regarding MbS’s controversial actions during his rise to power.
Major British tabloids and newspapers like The Sun and The Times quickly picked up the story, running headlines like “Saudi Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’ FORGED his father’s signature to launch Yemen invasion.”
Renewed scrutiny of MbS met with western inaction
These pieces reignited debates around MbS’s governance, his involvement in the Yemen war, the blockade of Qatar, the infamous Ritz-Carlton “shakedown” of Saudi billionaires and officials, and the 2017 saga in which Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri was forced to resign on Saudi TV.
While the Jamal Khashoggi murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul nearly six years ago still lingers in the public memory, these fresh allegations have brought back into focus the contentious early years of the crown prince’s ascent to power as the kingdom’s de facto ruler.
Yet, experts speaking to The Cradle do not believe that these articles about Jabri’s allegation are in any way part of a US and/or UK government-led information campaign designed to put the screws on MbS.
“I don’t think the US government has any interest right now in putting pressure on MbS – certainly not … in this manner right now, or in any other manner,” Dr William Lawrence, a professor of political science and international affairs at American University’s School of International Service, tells The Cradle, adding:
I do know that there are people in the US and Britain that continue to put pressure on MbS, going back to his rise to power and subsequent firings, and going back to the Khashoggi murder. Those people kind of come and go in the media, and I would just call this a coming in the media of that crowd. There are Americans and British people in the crowd, some of whom have connections to both governments. But there’s no governmental effort going on here.
The same is true regarding the British government. At this point, analysts say that policymakers in London are not motivated to leverage pressure on MbS or Saudi Arabia as a country.
“The UK has no real issues with MbS’s Saudi Arabia beyond human rights issues – at the moment at least,” Dr Andreas Krieg, an associate professor at King’s College London, explains to The Cradle.
“The UK government has been fairly positive towards Saudi in terms of how they communicate, how they engage over trade and also security. The relationship between the UK and Riyadh has been a lot more constructive now over the last couple of years than it was six or seven years ago. So, there’s no reason for the UK to put pressure on MbS at this point,” he explained.
On the recent media blitz against MbS, Dr Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, a Fellow for the Middle East at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, says:
Journalists were reporting on an allegation made in a BBC documentary by [Jabri], which is why it was deemed to be newsworthy, given the nature of the allegation that was being made. The documentary itself featured a number of pro-regime voices and was balanced in its overall assessment of MbS.
Pragmatism over principle
The US and Saudi Arabia have long been at odds over a range of sensitive regional and international issues, including Ukraine, Gaza, Israeli normalization, Syria, and OPEC+. These disagreements have fueled some significant tension in Washington and Riyadh’s relationship. In essence, Saudi Arabia has demonstrated its determination to conduct a foreign policy that is increasingly autonomous from the US and much less western-centric in an increasingly multipolar world. And while US policymakers are frustrated over this, they lack the leverage to change Saudi behavior, especially given that they increasingly need Riyadh’s cooperation as West Asia’s conflicts escalate.
The Saudi response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine spoke volumes about Riyadh’s determination to chart its own course on the international stage and navigate multipolarity in manners that the kingdom’s leaders see as most beneficial to Saudi interests.
Not only did Saudi Arabia avoid implementing any of the west’s sanctions on Moscow, but it also maintained close coordination with Russia on energy policies via OPEC+ and even hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin on his first post-February 2022 trip to West Asia. Moreover, Saudi officials refrained from referring to a Russian “invasion” when discussing the conflict.
Despite these frictions, Washington is not airing its grievances publicly. While on the campaign trail in 2019, Joe Biden vowed to treat Saudi Arabia as a “pariah” in response to human rights concerns, his administration has since taken a more pragmatic approach, closely cooperating with the kingdom. In reality, the White House has not treated Saudi Arabia as anything close to a “pariah.”
The US sees Riyadh holding special cards and being uniquely qualified to help Washington advance its interests across many portfolios. Rather than putting pressure on the kingdom, Biden’s team has done much to accommodate Saudi interests. The recent decision to resume the sale of offensive weapons to Riyadh illustrates this point.
The limits of US influence
Despite the Biden administration’s efforts to expand the scope of the 2020 Abraham Accords, Riyadh has stood firmly in favor of its long-held position that Israeli normalization can only happen after (as opposed to before) the brutal and dehumanizing Israeli occupation of Palestinian land ends and a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders is established.
Although the Biden team has sought to bring other Arab states, including Libya, into the Abraham Accords, the White House has been most focused on Saudi Arabia normalizing with Israel – and Biden has long wanted this unrealized possibility to be a centerpiece of his foreign policy legacy. Mindful of Saudi Arabia’s leadership role in the Arab–Islamic world, vast energy resources, and geography, Riyadh formalizing relations with Tel Aviv would constitute a major victory for Washington from the standpoint of integrating Israel into the region.
At the end of the day, the White House sees Saudi Arabia as too important and influential a country for the US to ostracize.
Quickly shrugging off his election rhetoric against the Saudi crown prince, Biden made a controversial trip to Jeddah five months after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and had his famous “fist bump” moment with MbS. As former US ambassador to Tunisia, Gordon Gray tells The Cradle:
President Biden’s meeting with MbS in Jeddah … [in] July 2022 …reflected his realization that the United States could no longer treat Saudi Arabia as a ‘pariah,’ as candidate Biden had proposed in November 2019, if it wanted to advance US security interests in the Middle East.
“The Biden team has clearly concluded that MbS’ human rights record is no longer a motivating concern, as evidenced by the decision to once again allow the sale of so-called offensive weapons to the Saudis,” Dr Annelle Sheline, a Research Fellow in the Middle East program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, explains to The Cradle.
Pushing for normalization with Israel
The Biden administration will continue to value Saudi Arabia as a key player that Washington must work with, both when it comes to limiting the Gaza war’s spillover effects throughout West Asia and containing the region’s Resistance Axis, in addition to winding down the Sudanese conflict.
If the Israeli war on Gaza is over before Biden's term expires, his team will want to see Riyadh normalize with Tel Aviv - an obsession of this administration, the rest of Washington's policy establishment, and Israel.
Regardless of whether Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump enters the Oval Office in early 2025, this US-led push to bring the kingdom into the Abraham Accords will remain a key part of Washington’s West Asia foreign policy, even if such an outcome is highly unrealistic given Israel’s refusal to make even minimal concessions to the Palestinians.
US officials are well aware that any government-led information campaign to humiliate MbS would be counterproductive from the standpoint of trying to bring Saudi Arabia into the Israeli normalization camp.
Meanwhile, the Jabri case continues to unfold in Canada, where he has been living since the 2017 palace coup. When a former Saudi intelligence official like Jabri makes serious allegations against MbS, it is understandable why many journalists report on these claims.
Jabri has his own motivations for ensuring that, even as MbS rises as a global statesman, the west does not forget certain aspects of his ascent to power. Journalists, activists, and concerned citizens in the west who oppose their governments’ dealings with MbS and his welcome in their countries are eager to maintain pressure on the Saudi crown prince.
While western policymakers, particularly in the US and UK, display no overt intentions to pressure MbS at this time, last week's disparaging media headlines constituted a swat at a Saudi leader who holds the keys to numerous western interests in his hands.
The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Cradle.
https://thecradle.co/articles-id/26635