Scramble for power after Saudi king dies

THE death yesterday of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, has unleashed a scramble for power in the world’s largest oil producer.

Fahd, who moved Saudi Arabia closer to the US, but ruled the nation in name only since suffering a stroke in 1995, will be replaced by his half-brother.

The newly appointed monarch, 81-year-old Crown Prince Abdullah, has been the kingdom's effective ruler for 10 years and is the main force behind unprecedented reforms and a two-year crackdown on al-Qaida groups.

Abdullah, now officially king, will likely try to move his allies into key positions and push forward on reform and anti-terror tracks.

Fahd died at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh, where he was admitted on May 27 for unspecified tests.

Saudi television, which said the king was 84, broke with regular broadcasting to announce Fahd's death.

Crude oil prices soared past $61 a barrel yesterday as markets reacted. The Saudi Stock market closed after the news.

Abdullah is a popular leader who has been the kingdom's effective ruler for 10 years and is the main force behind an unprecedented reform drive.

Sticking to tradition, Abdullah immediately appointed his half brother, Defence Minister Prince Sultan, 77, as his crown prince.

That move keeps the throne among the sons of Abdul-Aziz, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia. But while Abdullah and Sultan appear in good health, the advancing age of their generation means the next made up of dozens of Western-educated, technology-savvy princes is already wrangling over the line of succession.

Abdullah may find himself in a behind-the-scenes contest to manoeuvre his half brothers, including Prince Sultan, do the same.

The choice of Sultan, who has strong links to hardline clerics, is a sign that deep-rooted reform has been placed on the back burner as Abdullah pursues change at his own pace.

Saudi Arabia faces the challenges of liberalising its ailing economy and satisfying many Saudis' desire for greater freedom.

And, it must battle violent extremists who many people believe have been encouraged by the religious establishment and its strict Wahhabi philosophy.

Abdullah understood he had to initiate changes after the September 11 attacks, carried out by 19 Arab hijackers, 15 of them Saudi.

Fahd, meanwhile, was sidelined after suffering the debilitating stroke in 1995 that confined him mainly to a figurehead role. Since taking power in 1983, he steered Saudi Arabia firmly toward the US, allowing American troops to deploy on Saudi soil during the 1990 Gulf War, a move that angered conservatives.

He helped fund Islamic mujahedeen fighters battling the Soviets in Afghanistan. However, he later realized the danger of one of those fighters, Osama bin Laden, stripping him of his Saudi citizenship in the 1990s.