Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman tightens grip on power with relative’s detentions over ‘coup plot’
- Three princes, including the king’s brother and nephew, have reportedly been accused of treason and could face lifetime imprisonment or execution
- The detentions mark the latest crackdown in the country, following the imprisonment of prominent clerics, activists and business elites
Saudi authorities have detained three princes including King Salman’s brother and nephew on charges of plotting a coup, the US media reported Friday, signalling a further consolidation of power by the kingdom’s de facto ruler.
Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, a brother of King Salman, and the monarch’s nephew Prince Mohammed bin Nayef were accused of treason and taken from their homes early Friday by black-clad royal guards, The Wall Street Journal reported citing unnamed sources.
The Saudi royal court has accused the two men, once potential contenders for the throne, of “plotting a coup to unseat the king and crown prince” and could face lifetime imprisonment or execution, the newspaper said.
The New York Times also reported the detentions, adding that Prince Nayef’s younger brother, Prince Nawaf bin Nayef, had also been detained.