Saudi corruption drive "just the start"

www.bbc.com...

Sheikh Saud Al Mojeb's statement on the progress of the investigation spoke of "phase one" being complete.

So we have "dozens" of Princes and ministers or former ministers arrested. A prince killed in a shootout when they attempted an arrest. A member of the Bin Laden clan nabbed in the mix. The helicopter accident (?) resulting in the death of a senior prince and others.
We also have a broad background of recent moves toward more "liberal" and/or secular society, including the stripping the power of arrest from the religious police.
Oh, also, a step backwards with Lebanon and Iran with both sides talking of "acts of war" and "provocation"...

And this is Phase One?

Could the House of Saud really be cleaning up? This is a giant step West and not without risk. It really sounds like a soft coup. Is the King ill, and they're making sure there isn't a sucession battle later?

The US obviously knows all about this, whatever it is, based on Trump's comments.

Perhaps some hush condition to do with that big arms deal?

Arent there like some 15,000 "prince's" there?

And in their woman bashing society do they even do "princesses".

a reply to: RadioRobert

It is definitely wild!

This is game changing in the Middle East and nobody knows how this is going to play out.

I would imagine there is going to be a civil war in Saudi Arabia, this is a house divided and the Saudi's are particularly nasty and armed I might add.

Phase 1 is a declaration of war, I can only imagine what phase 2 shall be.

Outside possibility:

Trump Administration found a way to bring the House of Saud to its knees.

a reply to: IgnoranceIsntBlisss

I'm hoping it's a successful move towards westernization. They need to move away from oil and diversify. They're trying to bring in foreign money to invest. But at the same time, as an article I read noted, political instability is usually bad for foreign investment. Bit of a catch-22.
And yeah, there are lots and lots of princesses and princes. Haha

a reply to: elementalgrove

Exciting and a bit alarming all at the same time, for sure.

originally posted by: xuenchen
Outside possibility:

Trump Administration found a way to bring the House of Saud to its knees.

Not impossible. Probably more about finding a win-win?

Text“Additionally, President Trump noted that the king and crown prince’s recent public statements regarding the need to build a moderate, peaceful, and tolerant region are essential to ensuring a hopeful future for the Saudi people, to curtailing terrorist funding, and to defeating radical ideology – once and for all – so the world can be safe from its evil.”

If you hear anything about them being Anti-Iran, know that this is a pro-Israel coup.

Sure, the Sunni and Shia have a long lasting and complicated feuding history, but make no mistake, this "anti-corruption" movement isn't what it seems to be. Think bigger, it's a powergrab done in the light under a name that the masses will rally behind.

But for what purpose? Always consider the why.

Syria, Iran, and Lebanon should all be considered in danger at this moment in time.

Watch closely for future developments.

They're not really cleaning up. There is no genuine anti-corruption drive.

Crown Prince Mohammad has essentially orchestrated an internal coup, and is now clearing house of all his opponents and rivals to secure his own position.

I think what is actually happening is the House of Saud is transitioning from a system where rulership is collective and policy set by a consensus amongst the Royal Family, to an Autocracy.

Maybe I'm naive, but the Shia-Sunni split happened in the 7th century, and they've been at it hammer and tongs since. Not sure any kind of tension there means the Israelis have sponsored a coup...
But this is definitely a power consolidation move, yes.

I suspect it's much bigger than we think as we have no real clue of what's going on, it does seem there's a real struggle behind closed doors and probably other countries have their arms deep in it... perhaps as backers or protectors.

I cannot see a positive outcome to it, whatever side "wins".

It might be that they may or already doing sales in oil with chinese money and american dollars

originally posted by: xuenchen
Outside possibility:

Trump Administration found a way to bring the House of Saud to its knees.

Sell them arms to kill each other and then America will own the oil. See, Trump is a true cut throat businessman after all.

a reply to: RadioRobert

Who knows, maybe the US/World Gov't is even behind it.

If you listened to the Saudi foreign minister being interviewed on CNN yesterday then the end game is quite clear.

He said Iran had committed an act of war against Saudi Arabia by firing a missile at them. And that this would not be forgotten, and an appropriate response would be forthcoming soon.

He also said Iran is clearly trying to force access to the holy sites of Islam, and this would not be allowed.

And that Iran was fighting a proxy war against Saudi Arabia, and they would respond directly.


So, it seemed pretty clear that war against Iran was coming.

originally posted by: Painterz
If you listened to the Saudi foreign minister being interviewed on CNN yesterday then the end game is quite clear.

He said Iran had committed an act of war against Saudi Arabia by firing a missile at them. And that this would not be forgotten, and an appropriate response would be forthcoming soon.

He also said Iran is clearly trying to force access to the holy sites of Islam, and this would not be allowed.

And that Iran was fighting a proxy war against Saudi Arabia, and they would respond directly.


So, it seemed pretty clear that war against Iran was coming.

Wrong

The world is all run around "business" not wars. Shed them grades you earned in school and grow up to the "you are a minnow in the ocean and you will be eaten up by the sharks" environment . Always been that way.

originally posted by: RadioRobert
www.bbc.com...
Could the House of Saud really be cleaning up? This is a giant step West and not without risk. It really sounds like a soft coup. Is the King ill, and they're making sure there isn't a sucession battle later?

The US obviously knows all about this, whatever it is, based on Trump's comments.

Saudi politics is basically family politics. Succession rules were never all that cut-and-dried to begin with, and the current crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman (the son of the current king, King Salman), has only held the title since June 2017. The previous crown prince, Muhammad bin Nayef (the nephew of King Salman), had only held the position since April 2015. The reasons for his ouster are still unclear; however, he was reportedly still under house arrest in July 2017.

This current "purge" is likely the current Crown Prince cleaning house and securing his succession. King Salman is 81 years old, has had a least 1 stroke, a history of spine/back problems, and is battling old age dementia. He could die tomorrow; or, given modern medical technology, he could live another 10 years. Until he dies, the Crown Prince wields a good deal of power, and his role will likely only grow.

Apart from securing bin Salman's succession, the rest is just window dressing. I'm sure some of those arrested were corrupt, but so is pretty much everyone else in the House of Saud. Some of the recent and coming reforms - letting women vote and drive, for example - are genuinely positive moves, but they don't really change the status quo in an absolute monarchy. Other reform - such as no longer allowing the religious police the power of arrest - are just the royal family consolidating power.

a reply to: PhloydPhan

... . I'm sure some of those arrested were corrupt, but...
Some of the recent and coming reforms - letting women vote and drive, for example - are genuinely positive moves, but they don't really change the status quo in an absolute monarchy. Other reform - such as no longer allowing the religious police the power of arrest - are just the royal family consolidating power.

Hopefully at least some of the money seized and frozen was from the well-established link between royal money and extremism in Western countries. It's also pretty well established that Saudi money went to anyone willing to fight Assad. Which includes all sorts of unsavory characters.
I think culturally, the restrictions on the clerics are a big deal and were surprising. Locally that has a huge impact over time, especially as the Wahhabi is both very fundamentalist, and is generally seen as encouraging or contributing to sectarian violence in the region and extremism abroad.

I do agree with the over riding point that this is all about power consolidation. That's why I said "soft coup". I just hope there's a little more significance to the money.

www.zerohedge.com...

Early this morning, Israeli Channel 10 news published a leaked diplomatic cable which had been sent to all Israeli ambassadors throughout the world concerning the chaotic events that unfolded over the weekend in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia, which began with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri's unexpected resignation after he was summoned to Riyadh by his Saudi-backers, and led to the Saudis announcing that Lebanon had "declared war" against the kingdom.

The classified embassy cable, written in Hebrew, constitutes the first formal evidence proving that the Saudis and Israelis are deliberately coordinating to escalate the situation in the Middle East. The explosive classified Israeli cable reveals the following:

On Sunday, just after Lebanese PM Hariri's shocking resignation, Israel sent a cable to all of its embassies with the request that its diplomats do everything possible to ramp up diplomatic pressure against Hezbollah and Iran.

-The cable urged support for Saudi Arabia's war against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen.
-The cable stressed that Iran was engaged in "regional subversion".
-Israeli diplomats were urged to appeal to the "highest officials" within their host countries to attempt to expel Hezbollah from Lebanese government and politics.

I'm telling you all, you're being duped. Trump, Israel, Kushner, The Prince, all of them are in on it. Players larger than you understand are making international moves to secure certain permanent resource capitalization.

Oh, and the arrested Princes all wanted to "boycott" the Zionist agenda. Look where that got them.

The elites know how to play the masses, haha. Just say "anti corruption" and all of a sudden everyoje sides with who sounds like the Hero.

everyone is cheering for what looks like to be the ruminations of failed Israeli attempts at Middle Eastern hegemony.

There is another possibility going on here. From the reports that are coming out, all of the princes that are being arrested, happen to be all political rivals of the Crown Prince.

If it is true, it sounds like the crown prince is solidifying his position within the royal family and setting himself up to be king.

If history serves as a key point, when there are many people vying for the throne, usually one gets it into his head to eliminate his competition and secure a strong path to the throne.