Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud
| Mohammad bin Salman | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Second Deputy Prime Minister Minister of Defence |
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Prince Mohammad bin Salman pictured between 2009-2015
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| Minister of Defense | |||||
| In office | 23 January 2015 – | ||||
| Predecessor | Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | ||||
| Monarch | Salman | ||||
| Chief of the Royal Court | |||||
| In office | 23 January 2015 – | ||||
| Predecessor | Khaled al-Tuwaijri | ||||
| Monarch | Salman | ||||
| Head of the Crown Prince Court | |||||
| In office | 14 January 2013 – 23 January 2015 | ||||
| Predecessor | Ali bin Ibrahim Al Hadeethi | ||||
| Monarch | Abdullah | ||||
| Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia | |||||
| In office | 29 April 2015- | ||||
| Predecessor | Muhammad | ||||
| Monarch | Salman | ||||
| Born | 1985 (age 29–30) | ||||
| Spouse | Sara bint Mashoor bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | ||||
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| House | House of Saud | ||||
| Father | Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud | ||||
| Mother | Fahda bint Falah bin Sultan Al Hithalayn | ||||
| Religion | Islam | ||||
Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud (Arabic: محمد بن سلمان بن عبد العزيز آل سعود; born in 1985)[note 1] is the deputy crown prince of Saudi Arabia, second deputy prime minister and minister of defense. He is the youngest minister of defense in the world.[2] Mohammad is also chief of the royal court, and chairman of the Council for Economic and Development Affairs.
Contents
Early life[edit]
Prince Mohammad was born in 1985.[3] He is the son of King Salman and his third spouse Fahda bint Falah bin Sultan Al Hithalayn.[4] He is the full brother of Turki bin Salman, chairman of the Saudi Research and Marketing Group.[4] Prince Mohammad holds a bachelor degree in law from King Saud University.[5]
Career[edit]
After graduating college, the Prince spent several years in the private sector before being tapped by his father as a personal aide. He had already gotten the sinecure position as a consultant to the Experts Commission under the Saudi Cabinet.[citation needed]
On 15 December 2009, Prince Mohammad entered politics as a special advisor to his father Prince Salman when the latter was the governor of Riyadh Province.[6] At this time, the prince began to collect titles and sinecure positions such as secretary-general of the Riyadh Competitive Council, special advisor to the chairman of the Board for the King Abdulaziz Foundation for Research and Archives, and a member of the Board of Trustees for Albir Society in Riyadh region.[citation needed]
In 2011, The Crown Prince died, and Prince Salman began his ascent to power by becoming Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister in November 2011. He made Prince Mohammed his private advisor.[7]
Prince Mohammed established the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Foundation, otherwise known as MISK, which is meant to help needy youth and became the chairman of the foundation.[8]
Chief of the Court[edit]
In June 2012, the Crown Prince, Prince Nayef, died. Prince Salman moved up into the number two position in the hierarchy and soon began remaking the court in his own image, starting with appointing Prince Mohammed supervisor of the Crown Prince’s Office.[9] On 2 March 2013, the chief of the Crown Prince court Prince Saud bin Nayef was appointed governor of the Eastern province and Prince Mohammad succeeded him in the post. He was also given the rank of minister.[10][11][12] On 25 April 2014 Prince Mohammad was appointed state minister.[13]
Defense minister[edit]
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On 23 January 2015, King Abdullah died, and Salman took the throne. Then, Prince Mohammad was appointed minister of defense.[14] He was also named as the secretary general of the Royal Court on the same date.[15] In addition he retained his post as the minister of the state.[8][16]
Chair of the Council for Economic and Development Affairs[edit]
On 29 January 2015 Prince Mohammad was named the chair of the Council for Economic and Development Affairs which was established on the same date,[17] which replaced the disbanded Supreme Economic Commission.[17]
Intervention in Yemen[edit]
The first major event in his tenure as defense minister was Operation Decisive Storm, which is an operation against Houthi rebels in Yemen.[18]
Deputy Crown Prince[edit]
In April 2015 King Salman appointed a nephew, as Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, 55. At the same time King Salman appointed his young son Prince Mohammed, 30, as deputy crown prince.
Passing of the throne to the third generation[edit]
These changes indicate that the kingship will pass to a new generation for the first time since 1953.[19] Meetings with the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter in Jeddah followed the P5+1 agreement with Tehran in July 2015.[20]
Controversies[edit]
Lebanon-based Arabic-language daily Ad-Diyar alleged that the convoy escorting Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud, comprising 200 soldiers and 150 police officers, played a central role in the 2015 Mina stampede, by making some pilgrims turn around against the flow, which triggered a stampede. The article also stated that Mohammad and his huge entourage swiftly abandoned the scene, adding that the Saudi authorities sought to hush up the entire story and impose a media blackout on reporting Mohammad's presence in the area.[21]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Al Jazirah
- ^ "Mohammed bin Nayef kingpin in new Saudi Arabia: country experts". Middle East Eye. 1 February 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ "قصة-السعودية-مع-الوزراء-الثلاثينيين". Al Arabiya. 4 February 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Family Tree of Salman bin Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud". Datarabia. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Council of Ministers: Membership". Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington DC. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
- ^ "HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz to inaugurate Cityscape Riyadh 2011". AMEinfo. 31 October 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Prince Sultan arrives to Bahrain to attend Bahrain Grand Prix". Bahrain News Agency. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
- ^ a b Profile: Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Al Arabiya. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015
- ^ "Crown Prince Salman arrives in Jeddah". Saudi Gazette. 24 October 2013. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Leadership’s trust in me is my motivation – Muhammad". Saudi Gazette. 3 March 2013. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Prince Mohammad appointed president of crown prince court". Saudi Business News. 2 March 2013. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
- ^ "Prince Mohammed bin Salman appointed Special Advisor to Crown Prince". Asharq Alawsat. 3 March 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
- ^ "Chairman of the Board". MISK. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
- ^ "Saudi King Abdullah passes away". Al Arabiya. 23 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ^ "Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman named defense minister". Al Arabiya. 23 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ^ Anthony H. Cordesman (24 January 2015). "Saudi Succession: The King Is Dead, Long Live the King". Newsweek. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ a b Simeon Kerr (30 January 2015). "Saudi king stamps his authority with staff shake-up and handouts". Financial Times (Riyadh). Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ "Saudi and Arab allies bomb Houthi positions in Yemen". Al Jazeera. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
- ^ Saudi king resets succession to cope with turbulent times Reuters. 29 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
- ^ Barthelemy, Laurent & Timberlake, Ian. (22 July 2015) Saudis seek US reassurance on Iran deal. AFP. Retrieved 22 July 2015. Yahoo News website
- ^ "al-Diyar: Massacre in the ranks of Mecca pilgrims". Retrieved 25 September 2015.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud |
Minister of Defence 23 January 2015–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Khaled al-Tuwaijri |
Chief of the Royal Court 23 January 2015–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Prince Muhammad bin Nayef |
Second Deputy Prime Minister 29 April 2015–present |
Incumbent |
| Saudi Arabian royalty | ||
| Preceded by Prince Muhammad bin Nayef |
Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia 29 April 2015 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
