CaspianReport

Abdication of King Salman in Saudi Arabia (2017x37)

: 17, 2017

Saudi Arabia is at a turning point in its history. Last month, the government cracked down on dissidents and detained dozens of civilians. The events took place at the backdrop of other global developments such as the referendums in Iraqi Kurdistan and Catalonia as well as the ethnic cleansing of Rohingyas in Myanmar. Thus, the Saudi crackdown went largely unnoticed in the international media. Outlets that did cover the events presented it as a violation of human rights. Yet, the nature of the arrests is more subtle and indicates that King Salman is preparing to abdicate his throne and install his son bin Salman as the new ruler of Saudi Arabia.