Former Saudi Spymaster Claims Crown Prince Plotted to Kill King Abdullah
18:44 GMT 25.10.2021 (Updated: 08:31 GMT 26.10.2021)
© AP Photo / Saudi Press Agency
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman allegedly plotted to kill late King Abdullah to clear the path to the throne for his father amid tensions in the ruling family over the succession in 2014, Saad Aljabri, a former top Saudi intelligence official, said in an interview with the CBS.
Aljabri is currently embroiled in several lawsuits with the Saudi royalty. The former spymaster accuses the crown prince of sending a team to assassinate him in Canada, while the crown prince, in response, alleges that Aljabri stole billions of dollars of Saudi money.
In the interview, Aljabri claimed that in 2014, Mohammed bin Salman suggested to his cousin and then head of intelligence, Mohammed bin Nayef, that he could arrange to kill then ruling King Abdullah using "a poison ring from Russia."
"He told him, 'I want to assassinate King Abdullah. I get a poison ring from Russia. It's enough for me just to shake hand with him and he will be done'", Aljabri said.
The intelligence, according to Aljabri, took the threat seriously and the issue was handled privately within the family.
He also claimed that the crown prince is a "psychopath" who poses a threat to the world due to his "infinite resources", hinting at the fact that multiple media reports have linked Mohammed bin Salman to the gruesome assassination of famous Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
In this Friday, June 27, 2014 file photo, Saudi King Abdullah speaks before a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at his private residence in the Red Sea city of in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. On early Friday, Jan. 23, 2015, Saudi state TV reported King Abdullah died at the age of 90.
© AP Photo / Brendan Smialowski
King Abdullah died in 2015 at the age of 90 and was succeeded by his half-brother Salman, Mohammed bin Salman's father. Mohammed bin Nayef was named as a crown prince but was stripped of all royal and state titles by King Salman in 2017, while Mohammed bin Salman was made heir to the throne. The ousted crown prince was put under house arrest for reasons not disclosed to the public.
Last year, bin Nayef was reportedly arrested on charges of treason for planning a coup.
