But the kingdom has disclosed almost nothing about the charges against any of the detainees or about any settlement talks with them, so final outcomes, including in the case of Prince Mutaib, may be difficult to discern. A son of the deceased Saudi monarch King Abdullah, Prince Mutaib was once considered a contender for the throne. Until a few hours before his arrest he had controlled one of the three main Saudi armed forces, the national guard. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyUnlike any of the others detained in the Ritz during the crackdown, Prince Mutaib was also subjected to a coordinated social media campaign accusing him of corruption and self-enrichment as head of the national guard. The campaign appeared to be orchestrated by the crown prince or his allies, potentially in another effort to reduce the threat of any challenge by Prince Mutaib to the shake-up.

Source: New York Times November 28, 2017 19:18 UTC