Saudi Arabia: Crown Prince Mohammed becomes prime minister

He has opponents imprisoned and upsets decades-old traditions in the family: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is now also Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia.

The 37-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is now also Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia.

handouts . / Reuters

(Bloomberg) The 86-year-old King of Saudi Arabia has named his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to succeed him as the kingdom’s prime minister. The state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday. No reasons were given for this change.

Crown Prince Mohammed, 37, has gradually assumed more powers in the country of the world’s largest oil exporter under his father, King Salman bin Abdulaziz. The Crown Prince, known by his initials MBS, already oversees many of Saudi Arabia’s most important portfolios, including oil, defense, economic policy and internal security. His father will remain the head of state.

Mohammed bin Salman has been heir to the throne since ousting an older cousin in 2017. He has always concentrated power in his own hands, jailing potential opponents and overturning the decades-old tradition of balancing power between branches of the royal family.

The Crown Prince has pushed ahead with a comprehensive economic reform program. That year he received American President Joe Biden in the UK. This was seen as an attempt to resolve years of tensions surrounding the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist and critic Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul by Saudi agents.

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