A new broom in Saudi Arabia?

[Dave]

Seems that the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince is set to overturn much of the old regime.

First he has chsnged the law do that women will be able to drive, then there were hints that he would try to reduce the power and suthority of the imams. The placing of Aramco in the public market is imminent.

Now he has, seemingly, cracked fown on cortuption, arresting 11 princes, 4 sitting ministers and several former ministers. This is vondidered a huge change in official policy.

So, either Saudi Arabia will be dragged half out of the Middle Ages or a certain Crown Prince will suffer some kind of terminal experience before his expected elevation to the throne. Or maybe even after - Muslims tend to hold grudges for centuries it seems.

[No one]

Well, allah is a  bitter, bigoted, intolerant prick. Only makes sense that the mindless sheep that blindly follow, would be too.

[Dave]

I had forgotten that he had taken the power of arrest from the Saudi religious police - I guess they can still confiscate your bacon buttie though.

The commentators all say this is basically a power grab, with his ailing father's agreement. The Prince is not a democrat nor necessarily a supporter of secular law. This, combined with the public sale of Aramco shares to non-Mulsims, is going to have reoercusdion in the whole of Islam. In adopting a more "Western" attitude they are going yo create even more enemies amongst both sunni and shi'ite countrues and organisations - sunni grouos like El Qaeda and Daesh and an even deeper division with Iran, the Taliban.

Now the Iran supported shi'ites in Yemen have launched a missile that was intercepted and destroyed near Ryadh, though debris fell on the airport. That steps that fracas up a notch.