Billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal headed outdoors to Saudi Arabia\u2019s terracotta-colored sand dunes over the weekend, after being interrogated, investigated and detained for nearly three months in the kingdom\u2019s extraordinary anti-corruption campaign.<\/p>\n
The wealthy Saudi investor and royal shared photos of himself riding horses with his grandchildren and relaxing on Persian-style rugs, two hawks perched obediently before him on wooden stilts. More than a dozen men, some there to greet him and others there to serve him, are seen seated or standing around the prince as he looks out onto the desert.<\/p>\n
The photos on Twitter project the image of a man who still reigns supreme over his own fiefdom, a man who can still hold a \u201cmajlis\u201d \u2014 a reception in which people line up to request favours and assistance.<\/p>\n
But the prince\u2019s more than 80-day detention exposes a new hierarchy in the kingdom and brings into sharp focus just how little power even the wealthiest royals wield in the face of Saudi Arabia\u2019s young potentate-in-waiting.<\/p>\n
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the king\u2019s 32-year-old son and heir, oversaw the unprecedented shakedown of at least 11 princes and dozens of business moguls and officials, who together symbolized the elite structure encircling the ruling Al Saud family and its vast patronage networks. But now there are questions whether the prince succeeded in his effort to centralize power and eradicate corruption.<\/p>\n
The purge is now winding down, or at least moving to a new phase. More than 300 of those detained in the sweep have been released, though 56 others are still in custody and could face prosecution. The luxurious Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh, where most detainees were held, is scheduled to reopen to the public on Feb. 14.<\/p>\n
Among those detained was Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, once seen as a contender for the throne. The night of his arrest, he was ousted as head of the powerful National Guard, a position once held by his father, the late King Abdullah. His arrest raised concerns the purge was politically-motivated.<\/p>\n
At the Ritz-Carlton, where Prince Alwaleed, Prince Miteb and many others were held, interrogators dressed in civilian clothes and supervised by some Cabinet ministers questioned the detainees about their financial dealings.<\/p>\n
The government says the campaign, which began in November, netted an astounding $106 billion in financial settlements in closed-door exchanges with detainees eager to avoid further detention, embarrassment and trials. The settlements include a combination of cash, real estate, commercial assets and stocks, though no detailed breakdown has been given.<\/p>\n
As one of the world\u2019s largest oil producers, Saudi Arabia\u2019s purge echoed that of another major oil producer: Russia. Like Vladimir Putin\u2019s own purported anti-corruption purge years earlier, the Saudi crown prince\u2019s crackdown was seen as highly selective, targeting figures who may have criticized him or been reluctant to support his ascension to power.<\/p>\n
The crown prince had earlier detained dozens of people who allegedly had not enthusiastically supported his moves or who had criticized his hawkish policies on Yemen and Qatar.<\/p>\n
The government has not officially revealed the names of the roughly 380 people questioned in the anti-corruption probe, though dozens of high-profile names were leaked to state-linked media. The government has also not detailed the allegations the detainees faced or how they were being prosecuted, leading to concerns about transparency and due process.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe entire process was shrouded in secrecy from the onset,\u201d said Marwa Fatafta, a Middle East adviser to Transparency International. \u201cAsking detainees for assets in exchange for their release sounds like extortion, which is corruption.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Transparency International\u2019s Corruption Perception Index, Saudi Arabia scored a 46 last year, or what is considered a \u201cfailing grade.\u201d<\/p>\n
Critics and observers say that underlying Prince Mohammed\u2019s purge was a political effort to pressure leading businessmen and princes who did not actively support his so-called Vision 2030 plan, a blueprint for how to restructure the country and wean it from its dependence on oil revenue.<\/p>\n
Supporters of the crown prince argue the anti-corruption campaign succeeded because it kept intact the privacy of people\u2019s settlements and the allegations they faced.<\/p>\n
Many detainees remain very wealthy and have expressed their loyalty to the king and crown prince \u201cbecause they understand the power dynamics of the country,\u201d said Ali Shihabi, founder of the Arabia Foundation, a Washington D.C.-based think tank that has links with the Saudi government.<\/p>\n
He said the government sent a clear message to anyone indulging in high-level corruption that the old ways of doing business will no longer be tolerated.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was clearly a success. The objective was behavioural change,\u201d he said. \u201cNow, will some people be bitter? You never know. … That\u2019s always a risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just hours before his release, Prince Alwaleed voiced his support for the crown prince in an interview with Reuters from the hotel suite where he was held.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy allegiance is not on the table … for the king, crown prince, Saudi Arabia, it\u2019s non-negotiable,\u201d he said, before later adding: \u201cI can only say I\u2019m supporting the king and crown prince in all the efforts they\u2019re doing to really have a new Saudi Arabia.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ryan Bohl, a Middle East analyst for U.S. private intelligence firm Stratfor, says because the Saudi public appears to be supportive of efforts to weed out corruption, it is difficult for elites who may be looking to organize against the crown prince to find many supporters.<\/p>\n
\u201cYoung people are with the crown prince. Not only is he young himself, but he\u2019s making decisions that so far have been very popular or seen as long overdue,\u201d Bohl said.<\/p>\n
Last month, 11 princes were detained for allegedly trying to storm one of the royal palaces to complain about the removal of some royal perks as the crown prince works to overhaul the economy in the face of lower oil prices.<\/p>\n
They were immediately sent to a high-security prison on the outskirts of Riyadh, pending trial, according to state-linked media reports. Another prince, who released an audio recording calling the government\u2019s reasons for their arrest \u201cfalse\u201d and \u201cillogical,\u201d was promptly sacked from his position as head of one of the kingdom\u2019s sports federations.<\/p>\n
The incident revealed some of the simmering tensions within the royal family, less than a year after the crown prince sidelined an older, more experienced cousin to become heir.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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