King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, and his son Defense Minister Mohammed Bin Salman Al Saud in Hafr Al Batin area, north of Saudi Arabia, on March 11, 2016. Balkis Press/ABACA/ABACA/Press Association Images. All rights reserved.Domestic politics in the Middle East especially in a country like Saudi Arabia never stays that way for long. Recent events in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, demonstrate the contagion effect not only on the politics in the Middle East but internationally too.
On November 3, regime forces of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman embarked on an arrest purge of some of the most powerful figures in the country. They called it an anti-corruption drive and in some international capitals such as Washington the ‘cover story’ was parroted.
Despite the cover story about a corruption drive it is clear that the moves reflect the ongoing power-grab by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince as he clears the way both internally and externally to accede power from his father and remove perceived opponents.
