Saudi Princes, Officials Arrested as Royal Family Consolidates Rule | Democracy Now!

7.11.17

Saudi Princes, Officials Arrested as Royal Family Consolidates Rule | Democracy Now!: In Saudi Arabia, authorities arrested scores of prominent officials over the weekend, including 10 princes, four ministers and dozens of former ministers, in a massive shakeup by King Salman aimed at consolidating power for his son, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. Among those arrested was Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, one of the world’s richest people, with an estimated net worth of at least $17 billion. Talal has investments in many well-known U.S. companies, like Apple, Twitter, Citigroup—and Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, News Corp. Separately, a senior Saudi prince died Sunday when his helicopter crashed near the border with Yemen, fueling speculation he’d been assassinated. The arrests, on unspecified “corruption” charges, came just hours after the crown prince convened a new anti-corruption committee with wide-ranging powers to detain and arrest anyone accused, and to search their homes and seize their assets. The arrests came as the White House said President Trump called King Salman to offer thanks for the kingdom’s purchases of billions of dollars in U.S. weaponry, while praising what it called the kingdom’s “modernization drive.” The White House made no mention of the arrests. President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, was in Saudi Arabia last week.