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Saudi Crown Prince Nayef, next in line to throne, dies
armradio.am
16.06.2012 15:44
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz al-Saud has died in
Geneva, Saudi state television said on Saturday, citing a royal court
statement, Reuters reports.
Nayef, interior minister since 1975 and thought to be 78, was the heir
to Saudi King Abdullah and was appointed crown prince in October after
the death of his elder brother and predecessor in the role, Crown
Prince Sultan.
His death means the 89-year-old King Abdullah must nominate a new heir
for the second time in nine months.
Defence Minister Prince Salman, 76, seen as likely to continue King
Abdullah's cautious reforms, has long been viewed as the next most
senior prince in the kingdom's succession.
Nayef had a reputation as a steely conservative who opposed King
Abdullah's reforms and developed a formidable security infrastructure
that crushed al Qaeda but also locked up some political activists.
He, King Abdullah and Salman are among the nearly 40 sons of Saudi
Arabia's founder, Abdulaziz ibn Saud, who established the kingdom in
1935.
Salman was made defense minister in November and had served as Riyadh
governor for five decades.
armradio.am
16.06.2012 15:44
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz al-Saud has died in
Geneva, Saudi state television said on Saturday, citing a royal court
statement, Reuters reports.
Nayef, interior minister since 1975 and thought to be 78, was the heir
to Saudi King Abdullah and was appointed crown prince in October after
the death of his elder brother and predecessor in the role, Crown
Prince Sultan.
His death means the 89-year-old King Abdullah must nominate a new heir
for the second time in nine months.
Defence Minister Prince Salman, 76, seen as likely to continue King
Abdullah's cautious reforms, has long been viewed as the next most
senior prince in the kingdom's succession.
Nayef had a reputation as a steely conservative who opposed King
Abdullah's reforms and developed a formidable security infrastructure
that crushed al Qaeda but also locked up some political activists.
He, King Abdullah and Salman are among the nearly 40 sons of Saudi
Arabia's founder, Abdulaziz ibn Saud, who established the kingdom in
1935.
Salman was made defense minister in November and had served as Riyadh
governor for five decades.